IMGL CONFERENCE PRE-FEATURE
Protecting the legal gaming ecosystem – one illegal market at a time AHEAD OF THE IMGL D.C. CONFERENCE, BILL MILLER GIVES THE REGULATED INDUSTRY VIEW ON WAYS THE BLACK MARKET CAN BE TACKLED
consumer protections, regulatory oversight, and gaming taxes that ensure revenues benefit local communities. Yet despite this expansion, illegal and unregulated operators remain one of the most significant threats to the industry. It is not a peripheral concern. It is a parallel market actively undermining public policy and regulatory systems. Illegal gambling: a top industry and regulatory priority Illegal gambling is not confined to a single vertical. It spans land-based, iGaming, unregulated machines, and sports betting, including offerings that attempt to rebrand wagering activity as something else entirely. While these models differ in form, they share a common feature: they operate outside
Today’s legal gaming market The US gaming industry is a longstanding economic engine contributing US$328 billion 1 annually to the national economy. What began in Nevada has expanded to 47 states, collectively generating more than US$52 billion in annual tax revenue. These revenues are reinvested in communities to fund critical public services. Today, legal gaming – including traditional, online casino gaming (iGaming), and sports betting – is widely viewed as mainstream entertainment, with nearly nine in ten Americans (88 percent) 2 saying casino gambling is acceptable for themselves or others. This level of public acceptance has remained steady for more than a decade. That trust is not accidental. It is the product of responsible growth, robust
1 American Gaming Association, National Economic Impact of the U.S. Gaming Industry (2023), https://www.americangaming.org/resources/ national-economic-impact-of-the-u-s-gaming-industry-2023/ 2 American Gaming Association, American Attitudes Toward Gaming, https://www.americangaming.org/resources/american-attitudes-to- wards-gaming/
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IMGL MAGAZINE | MARCH 2026
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