Sports Betting Industry Spending on U.S. Midterm Elections Surpasses $72 Million

Online sports betting companies have funneled at least $72 million into the 2026 U.S. midterm election cycle, according to the latest federal campaign finance data, as the industry braces for growing competition and scrutiny from prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket. The figure makes sports betting the third-largest corporate donor bloc in this cycle, trailing only the crypto and technology sectors, according to estimates from corporate watchdog Public Citizen.

Most of that spending has flowed through Win for America, a super PAC formed late last year and backed by DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics and UK-based bet365. The group has already collected $43 million in the first quarter of 2026 and another $29 million in the second, funneling the money into two affiliated PACs: American Future, which supports Democratic candidates, and the American Conservative Fund, which backs Republicans in state-level races nationwide.

Who’s Writing the Checks

DraftKings leads all donors with at least $34 million contributed to Win for America during the current two-year cycle, followed by FanDuel at $27 million. Bet365, operating through its U.S. subsidiary Hillside (Shared Services US) LLC, and Fanatics have each chipped in $5.5 million. DraftKings has also steered at least $1 million to other political committees outside Win for America, while FanDuel has added another $2 million on top of its PAC contributions.

The spending isn’t evenly distributed. Georgia has emerged as one of the most heavily targeted states, with Win for America directing more than $12 million through its two affiliate PACs into legislative races there while lawmakers debate whether to legalize sports betting. Rick Claypool, a research director at Public Citizen, called the scale of the effort unprecedented for the industry, saying Win for America “is ramping up to be another corporate money juggernaut.”

Prediction Markets Change the Calculus

The timing of the spending surge lines up with a broader turf war unfolding in Washington. Kalshi and Polymarket, which offer event contracts on sports outcomes but are regulated federally by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission rather than by individual states, have expanded rapidly into markets where traditional sportsbook operators are licensed and taxed. That regulatory gap has become the industry’s central grievance, since prediction markets can operate in states where sports betting itself remains illegal.

Kalshi alone spent $990,000 on federal lobbying in the first half of 2026 — more than it spent for all of 2025 — while the American Gaming Association spent $630,000 over the same stretch pushing back on event contracts tied to sports and elections. Congress has floated bills like the bipartisan “Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act,” but with lawmakers focused on the run-up to November, most observers don’t expect major legislation on the issue this year. Notably, DraftKings, FanDuel and Fanatics have each launched their own prediction-market products even as they continue lobbying to protect the state-regulated sportsbook model that remains their primary business.

Federal disclosures also likely understate the industry’s total political footprint. The $72 million figure doesn’t capture every dollar routed to state-level committees or to nonprofit groups that aren’t required to disclose their donors, meaning the real scope of sportsbook operators’ influence campaign ahead of November could be considerably larger.

Why Georgia Became Ground Zero

Georgia’s outsized share of the spending isn’t a coincidence. The state remains one of the largest population centers in the country without legal mobile sports betting, and lawmakers there have spent the past several sessions weighing proposals that could finally open the market to operators like DraftKings and FanDuel. Pouring more than $12 million into legislative races through American Future and the American Conservative Fund gives Win for America leverage over exactly the kind of statehouse math that decides whether legalization bills clear committee votes or die on the calendar.

That pattern is likely to repeat in other unregulated or partially regulated states as the midterms approach. With a limited number of legislative sessions left before 2027, the sportsbook industry has strong incentive to back candidates now who might vote favorably on licensing frameworks, tax rates and — increasingly — how aggressively their state pushes back against prediction markets operating without a state license.

What Happens Next

The CFTC released its proposed rule for prediction markets in June and is currently working through a public comment period, meaning no federal resolution is likely before the midterms are decided. In the meantime, the CFTC has already sued several states — including New York, Wisconsin, Arizona, Connecticut and Illinois — arguing it holds sole authority to regulate prediction markets, a stance the Trump administration has publicly backed.

For bettors, the fight matters beyond politics. If sportsbooks succeed in getting sympathetic legislators elected, expect continued pushback against prediction markets at the state level alongside steady progress on new licensing bills in states like Georgia. If prediction markets keep winning at the federal level instead, sports fans in states without legal sportsbooks could see Kalshi- and Polymarket-style contracts become their default way to bet on games — with a very different set of consumer protections than a state-licensed book like DraftKings is required to offer.