News In Brief: April 21-April 25, 2025

Slovakia’s government has banned gambling, except for online games, from 8:00am to 6:00pm on April 26, 2025, as the country mourns the death of Pope Francis.

The government declared a period of national mourning for Saturday.

The Slovakian Gambling Regulatory Authority stated that the ban covers land-based gambling, as well as the national lottery and its supplementary game, which is operated in cooperation with foreign operators. The publication of gambling results is also prohibited during the national mourning period, according to a press release on April 24.

Brazil’s licensed betting operators can offer bets on a full range of esports contests, according to an ordinance published on Wednesday (April 23) by the Brazilian federal government’s Ministry of Sports.

An initial list of permitted betting events published in late December had specified that operators may only accept wagers on esports that have been approved by the International Olympic Committee.

Under the new ordinance, operators may offer bets on any esports tournaments that “have obtained a licence or authorisation from the developer or the holder of the intellectual property rights of the electronic games played in such tournaments”.

Esports tournament organisers are also expressly prohibited from granting any operator exclusive rights to offer bets on their events.

The Ministry of Sport in February opened a public consultation to review whether to allow a wider range of esports betting in Brazil’s regulated market. 

Around 90 percent of respondents suggested that betting should be permitted on popular games such as League of Legends or Call of Duty, according to results released by the ministry last week.

In addition to adding a wider range of esports, the Ministry of Sport’s ordinance recognises Australian Rules Football, Gaelic football and cornhole as approved sports for betting.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, signed an agreement Wednesday (April 23) allowing the state to become the sixth member of the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) for poker.

With the state’s entry into the MSIGA, Pennsylvania becomes the largest state in the shared market that now covers 38m Americans. The Commonwealth joins New Jersey, Nevada, Delaware, West Virginia and Michigan in the MSIGA.

“This is a commonsense step to support hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians, grow our economy, and bring in more revenue to support our schools, our seniors, our small businesses, and more,” Shapiro said in a statement.

“There of our neighbors are already part of this agreement, and with this action today, we’re making sure Pennsylvania remains competitive in a rapidly growing online market,” the governor said.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board estimates that there are 150,000 online poker players in the state. Online poker players will be able to participate in multi-state games beginning on Monday (April 28), according to the control board.

Prediction market Kalshi has filed suit in Maryland as part of its continued efforts to prevent state regulators from taking enforcement actions against the company.

The company filed suit Monday (April 21) against the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency (MLGCA), director John Martin, the individual members of the state’s gaming commission, and Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown.

Martin sent Kalshi a cease-and-desist letter on April 7 ordering the company to halt the offering of its sports event contracts with an April 22 deadline to comply or face potential action, and after the MLGCA held firm in an email exchange Monday, the company filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland Northern Division.

Similar to lawsuits the company has filed in Nevada and New Jersey, the company is seeking a permanent injunction that prevents the state regulators from taking enforcement action against the company, arguing that their regulatory authority is preempted by regulation from the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which to date has permitted the contracts.

A judge granted a preliminary injunction in Nevada, which was cited in the company’s Maryland filing, and the case in New Jersey has yet to receive a hearing.

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has fined Borgata Casino more than $450,000 to settle four complaints stemming from several violations of state gaming regulations, ranging from underage gambling to allowing a self-excluded person to gamble undetected.

The DGE’s first complaint showed that from September 2021 through December 2023, Borgata permitted 21 underage individuals into the casino where they gambled at various slot machines and table games undetected, while a second complaint found that from February 2020 through August 2024, there were 15 incidents of dealer error violations.

According to a third complaint, Borgata allowed 15 excluded people to enter the casino and gamble at slot machines undetected between May 2019 and August 2025. 

Finally, the DGE found that the MGM-operated casino permitted 20 self-excluded persons to enter the property and play at various table games and slot machines from August 2020 until September 2024.

The regulator imposed a fine of $375,000 for the four complaints, Additionally, the DGE ordered further disgorgement of $75,097.80. 

The executive director of the Texas Lottery Commission has resigned amid two investigations into the integrity of lottery prizes and scrutiny from state lawmakers over the introduction of courier services in the state.

The lottery announced Ryan Mindell’s resignation on Monday (April 21) without comment. Mindell was the former deputy director and operations director at the Texas Lottery and was named to the top job last year following the resignation of Gary Grief.

Robert Rivera, the lottery commission’s chair, said in a statement that the commission will begin the process of finding Mindell’s replacement at its meeting on Tuesday (April 29). The commission was also expected to ban lottery couriers from operating in the state at its meeting next week.

The Texas Lottery generates about $2bn annually in revenue for the state’s public school fund. Lawmakers are considering several changes, from a ban on courier companies to shutting down the agency by eliminating all of its funding.

The Texas Tribune reported that the House’s budget passed with zero funding for the lottery commission. The lottery has been criticized for allowing courier services to operate in the state, and a $95m jackpot in 2023 was won by a single group buying out almost every possible ticket combination. 

Mike Dreitzer, chief executive of privately held Gaming Arts, will become chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) at the end of the 2025 legislative session in June when current chairman Kirk Hendrick steps down.

Dreitzer has been CEO of the slot machine and gaming technology developer since 2018. Before joining Gaming Arts, he was president of Ainsworth Game Technology’s North American Division in Las Vegas.

Dreitzer also worked as a Nevada deputy attorney general, advising the control board and the Nevada Gaming Commission. Gaming Arts is in the process of merging with Germany-based Merkur Gaming and is expected to appear before Nevada gaming regulators next month.

Dreitzer is resigning from the company and will provide transition services until he can begin his role at the control board. Hendrick was appointed chairman by Republican Governor Joe Lombardo in January 2023, along with former judge George Assad, who was named to fill an open seat on the NGCB.

Earlier this year, Lombardo named Reno Deputy City Attorney Chandeni Sendall to a four-year term on the three-member board.

MGM Resorts International has agreed to a pay a $8.5m fine to Nevada regulators to settle a complaint over a former executive who allowed illegal bookmakers to gamble millions of dollars and pay debts in cash at two of their Las Vegas properties.

The ten-count complaint and settlement regarding violations of the federal Bank Secrecy Act in 2018 by MGM Grand’s former president Scott Sibella were filed by the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) on Thursday (April 17).

Nine of the counts in the NGCB’s complaint involved Wayne Nix, a convicted illegal bookmaker and former minor league baseball player. The tenth count dealt with convicted illegal bookmaker Mathew Bowyer.

In a statement released Friday, the control board said the complaint focused on Nix, but also details the activities of Bowyer, “which were discovered by the NGCB during the course of its investigation”.

Nix and Bowyer were allowed to gamble millions of dollars at the MGM Grand Las Vegas and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in 2018.

The Nevada Gaming Commission is scheduled to consider the fine at its meeting on Thursday (April 24).