Sweepstakes casinos in Kentucky

PRIMARY-SOURCE NOTE

Kentucky's lawsuit against VGW calls each sweepstakes website a gambling device

What the law does

KRS 528.010 uses the word sweepstakes only once, in the clause on devices permanently located in a business establishment such as a private club¹. Gambling means staking or risking something of value on an outcome that depends on an element of chance, on the understanding that someone will receive something of value¹. A separate clause makes a gambling device of any electronic or computerized contrivance that requires payment of consideration to activate a game, offers games whose outcomes are determined by any element of player skill, and may entitle the player to cash, cash equivalents, or electronic credits exchangeable for cash¹. KRS 528.020 reaches whoever knowingly advances or profits from unlawful gambling by setting up and operating a gambling device, and names that offense promoting gambling in the first degree, a Class D felony². A person who gambles only as a contestant, without other profit from the game, has a defense to prosecution under the chapter¹.

What has happened since

On June 17, 2026, Attorney General Russell Coleman sued VGW, the company behind Chumba Casino, Global Poker and LuckyLand Slots, in Franklin Circuit Court as case 26-CI-00697, in one of three suits his office filed that day³⁴. The complaint quotes both the sweepstakes entry clause and the electronic contrivance clause, and it alleges that each VGW website, and each game hosted on it, is a gambling device³. Its four counts seek recovery of gambling losses under the Loss Recovery Act, penalties under the Consumer Protection Act, disgorgement for unjust enrichment, and an injunction with civil penalties of $25,000 per device under KRS 528.100³. A new version of the definitions section took effect after the filing, on July 15, 2026, under 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 184, sec. 38¹. That lawsuit is the only event in our tracked history for Kentucky, and we hold no exit date for any operator there. 34 of the operators we track are recorded as excluding Kentucky.

What is still open

The electronic contrivance clause covers a terminal, machine or other device that requires payment to activate a game, and the sweepstakes entry clause covers devices permanently located in a business establishment¹³. The per-device penalty the complaint seeks depends on whether the court reads a website into that wording, and our record holds no ruling or motion in the case. The complaint also treats Sweeps Coins labeled a free bonus on Gold Coin purchases as paid play, and relies on KRS 372.040, which lets any other person sue a winner for treble the value lost if the loser does not sue within six months³. For standing it cites a 2020 Kentucky Supreme Court decision against Stars Interactive Holdings³. No ruling in our record says whether that section reaches a sweepstakes operator.

Enforcement search

The Attorney General sued VGW, the company behind Chumba Casino, Global Poker and LuckyLand Slots, in Franklin Circuit Court on June 17, 2026, calling each website a gambling device. Our record holds no later filing, ruling or exit for Kentucky.

Question still open

Whether the Franklin Circuit Court reads a sweepstakes website as a gambling device under the electronic contrivance clause, and whether the Loss Recovery Act claim can reach a sweepstakes operator, has no answer in our record.

Sources for this note

1. KRS 528.010, definitions for the gambling chapter, current version (Kentucky Legislative Research Commission) accessed Sep 28, 2026
2. KRS 528.020, promoting gambling in the first degree (Kentucky Legislative Research Commission) accessed Sep 28, 2026
3. Commonwealth ex rel. Coleman v. VGW Holdings U.S. Inc. et al., complaint, Franklin Circuit Court (filed copy on ag.ky.gov) accessed Sep 28, 2026
4. Attorney General Coleman Launches Three Lawsuits Against Illegal Gambling Companies (Office of the Attorney General) accessed Sep 28, 2026

Sources rechecked 2026-09-28. Next scheduled review 2026-12-28.