Betting
Betting
Gambling

Bally's Atlantic City in Hot Water with $2.5 Million Unpaid Jackpot and 2025 Losses

Longtime AC casino Bally's Atlantic City is finding itself in troubling times on multiple fronts, as their first half of 2025 has been rough and they are currently facing a massive lawsuit over a $2.5 million slot machine jackpot they have refused to pay, claiming a machine malfunction.

Steve Lapinski
Steve Lapinski

Last updated: 2025-08-29

Chad Nagel

4 minutes read

SportsBoom offers honest and impartial bookmaker reviews to help you make informed choices. While we may earn commissions through affiliate links, our content remains independent and free from promotional influence. For more information, see our Content Transparency and How We Review pages.

Bally's Atlantic City has come under fire, both in the courtroom over an alleged multi-million dollar unpaid jackpot, and in their dismal earnings reports.

Although it looks like business as usual on the casino floor, trouble is brewing on multiple fronts for Bally's Atlantic City hotel and casino.

At SportsBoom, we generally stick to US casino news related to gambling online, with the occasional mix of developments out in Las Vegas, the casino capital of the United States. However, with gambling exploding all around the country, both in the various state-sanctioned land-based casinos and on tribal lands, sometimes we feel the need to share some breaking news with you from other markets.

Bally's Atlantic City Casino & Hotel Under Fire

There are some big developments in Atlantic City, and two of the biggest stories right now are related to troubles over at a longtime boardwalk property, Bally's Atlantic City.

Bally's AC is coming under fire on two fronts.

Back in June, a player won, or at least thought she won, a massive $2.5 million jackpot on a Wheel of Fortune slot machine made by IGT. The casino disputes that claim, and now the two parties are embroiled in a lawsuit.

Over in the boardroom there's general unease about the company's quarterly reports, as Bally's earnings reports look grim. And that's with them not paying the large jackpot in dispute.

Let's take a look at both of these developments in detail.

Big Fight Ensues Over Alleged Unpaid Jackpot

Donna Inserra, a New Jersey resident, has filed a lawsuit against Bally's Atlantic City after the casino refused to pay her alleged $2.5 million jackpot win on a progressive Wheel of Fortune slot machine game.

The plaintiff claims that, in June 2025, while playing the Wheel of Fortune slot, the reels lined up with the jackpot combination worth millions of dollars, only to see the casino hide behind the "Malfunction Voids All Pays and Plays" principle.

Officials from Bally's claim that the "win" wasn't really a "win," but rather a technical malfunction, or glitch.

Slot machines are controlled by random number generators, or RNGs, that determine the outcome of spins. They ensure that each spin is random and independent of any previous results. According to manufacturer's, the random result selected by the generator is the actual result of the casino game, not the visible display, which can, in some circumstances, produce a jackpot that doesn't represent the game's actual result.

Of course, when there's a disconnect between what shows on the screen or reels and what the believed internal result of the game displays, a legal fight is almost guaranteed.

We will keep you up to date as the courtroom drama unfolds.

Worse Yet, Bally's 2025 Results Already Stink

Should the plaintiff in the Wheel of Fortune jackpot case get her way, it will be making an already dismal situation head even more south.

There are already rumors swirling about the Atlantic City property, as Bally's, according to reports, has suffered losses during the first half of 2025. 

According to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, Bally's did actually report a small $2.3 million profit in Q2 of 2025, however their net operation for the year so far is in the red. For the first half of 2025, Bally's has reported an operating loss of $896,000.

There is a lot of bad news when you dig into the numbers of their reports, including:

  • 14.7% decrease from Q2 2024 profit levels
  • Only 55% hotel room occupancy (62% in 2024)
  • Net revenue down 7.7% in the first six months of 2025

And, before you blame everything on Atlantic City in general, other casinos are flourishing with greatly increased numbers, including the Borgata, Hard Rock and Ocean Casino.

We always liked Bally's in the days when we visited Atlantic City frequently. Despite being bearers of bad news, we hope a comeback is in the cards.

Steve Lapinski
Steve LapinskiEditor

Steve Lapinski specializes in just about everything related to slot machines and casino games, both online and in land-based casinos in the USA. With over 25 years experience in the online gaming industry and nearly 40 years as a recreational gambler, the breadth of his knowledge on these topics is matched by few. Steve is passionate about casinos, and he takes great pride in sharing his knowledge of the subject with his readers.

Betting