Five major stories we are tracking In 2026 by Casino Reports
Legalization, taxation, and innovation will all undoubtedly be in the spotlight in this new year
The media cannot report tomorrow’s news today. But the media can, and should, know what to keep an eye on in anticipation of tomorrow’s news.
We here at Casino Reports don’t have a crystal ball that tells us what twists and turns and controversies and lawsuits await in the year ahead. But we do have common sense and experience to guide us and tell us where to fix our gaze so that we’re in position when the news breaks.
To put it in gambling terms: We don’t know what the next card in the deck will be, but we know what table to sit at to find out.
What follows is a look at several tables at which we expect to pull up a chair in 2026. Knowing where things left off at the end of 2025, these are five stories you can confidently expect extensive coverage of at Casino Reports throughout the coming year.
The gambling tax deduction fight
It’s too late to stop the 90% loss deduction cap before it becomes law. But it’s not too late to undo it before its effects can be felt.
Quick refresher: The budget bill that President Trump signed on July 4 contains a provision that has had serious gamblers (especially professionals) up in arms from the moment it was inserted, only allowing them to deduct 90% of their losses for tax purposes. It would create a scenario where they can lose more money than they win and somehow owe the government a cut anyway.
National politicians from Nevada have been leading the way on trying to get this policy reversed, particularly Rep. Dina Titus with her FAIR BET Act in the House, but also Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen with their FULL HOUSE bill in the upper chamber. They’re all Democrats, but as The Nevada Independent reported last weekend, Rep. Mark Amodei, the lone Nevada Republican in the House, is also on board, planning to work with Titus and wield his influence on fellow Republicans in key committees.
Because Titus and friends couldn’t get anything done before the end of 2025, gamblers have entered the new year uncertain about how to proceed. The legislators have until the end of this year to overturn the new tax rules before they actually go into effect. The clock is ticking, and this figures to be a major story in the industry until it’s either resolved or becomes a damaging 2027 reality.
The state-by-state iCasino legalization effort
Everyone in the industry has learned by now to temper any expectations when it comes to new states legalizing online casinos. The general attitude is, “Expect nothing to happen, so you can be pleasantly surprised if something does.”
Still, even if no new states pass any legislation in 2026, there will assuredly be plenty of bill-related news to cover. A full dozen states saw iCasino bills introduced in 2025, and legislators in many of them have announced intentions to try, try again in ’26.
There will be particular focus on New York, where state Sen. Joseph Addabbo has a theoretically clearer runway than ever with the brick-and-mortar casino licensing process complete. But we’ll also surely be covering efforts in Massachusetts, Ohio, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and others — not to mention there’s an iGaming bill on Maine Gov. Janet Mills’ desk for her to address soon after the legislature returns next Wednesday. Mills is expected to veto (or pocket veto) it, but one way or another, there will be news to report on in January — followed the rest of the year by lots of curbing of enthusiasm regarding successful legislation.
The alleged mob-run rigged poker game case
Take an NBA Hall of Famer and active NBA head coach and place him at the center of a scandal that has the FBI alleging the mafia was fixing poker games to fleece wealthy players, and you have a story that can’t possibly go away quietly.
Chauncey Billups pleaded not guilty in November on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, kicking this can into 2026. There probably won’t be much to cover in January or February. The next court hearing is set for March 4, which will set in motion a year of continued coverage and speculation, along with plentiful Frank Pentangeli jokes and references.
(Relevant information as you make those jokes/references: Yes, Chauncey has a brother. Rodney Billups is an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets.)
The opening of the first full-on NYC casino
Two of the three land-based casinos coming to downstate New York aren’t anticipated to open until 2030. So while there will be some coverage of the early days of construction of Steve Cohen’s Metropolitan Park project in Queens, and close watching of the financials of Bally’s as the company gets ready to break ground in the Bronx, those two properties figure to generate headlines sparingly in 2026.
Not so for Resorts World New York City, which is merely an expansion of the existing Aqueduct Racetrack in Jamaica, Queens, and is expected to open the doors to its casino — at least a partially completed version of it — as early as March.
The gambling floor at Aqueduct will be expanded and rearranged for the addition of table games and high-limit rooms. The gambling media and the New York media will be dialed in, providing updates on what’s ready, what’s coming soon, what the foot traffic is like, what the monthly revenue is, what other amenities are being added, etc.
By 2030, Resorts World New York City may be old news. Throughout 2026, it’ll be the biggest news in town.
The continuing pursuit of workarounds and loopholes
Shortly before Halloween, Hard Rock Bet changed the game. The only regulated sports betting app in Florida introduced a “Games” vertical, which took advantage of a technicality in the state compact to offer online slot games that the operator says are not slot games because the outcomes are “Powered by Past Motor Racing.”
It’s basically an adaptation of the historical horse racing (HHR) concept and the latest proof that innovators and finaglers in the gambling space will never stop looking for loopholes that let them offer new(-ish) forms of gambling ostensibly legally.
Even as sweepstakes gaming gets shoved aside in many states, operators are experimenting with triple-currency approaches instead of dual-currencies and role-player card games like Card Crush, which popped in California and New York late in 2025.
And just wait until prediction markets figure out how to let users “buy positions” on a blackjack hand or a wheel spin.
Operators are going to keep throwing things at the wall in 2026. And Casino Reports will be there report and analyze — and presumably roll our collective eyes at all the ways we’re told these games are legal and/or aren’t gambling.
https://www.casinoreports.com/five-major-stories-tracking-2026/