Florida Sues Stake and VGW Over Illegal Sweepstakes Casinos

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed two lawsuits in the Hillsborough County Circuit Court on August 19, 2026, against major online sweepstakes casino operators Stake and VGW Holdings. The state alleges these companies operate illegal gambling enterprises by using a dual-currency system—where players purchase virtual coins to receive redeemable credits—to bypass state licensing, taxation, and consumer protection laws.

The lawsuits target VGW's platforms, including Chumba Casino, LuckyLand, and Global Poker, as well as Stake.us. Uthmeier contends that these companies use a legal fiction to disguise real-money gambling and have utilized celebrity and influencer campaigns to prey on vulnerable residents, specifically minors and seniors. The legal action also names Stake co-founders Ed Craven (known as The House in the Pines) and Bijan Tehrani, alleging their personal control over the company's expansion.

In addition to the operators, the state is suing payment processors Breeze Labs, Praxis, Trustly, and Worldpay for facilitating the illegal operations. Florida is seeking permanent injunctions to ban the sites from operating or soliciting customers in the state, the disgorgement of unlawful profits, civil penalties under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, and full restitution for money lost by Florida consumers.