Playtech Downplays California Sweeps Casino Exit in Earnings Call

In their earnings call, Playtech downplays their sweepstakes casino involvement and the effects of their exit from offering sweepstakes casino games to players in the State of California. In other news, Arizona shuts down a sweepstakes that was raffling off a dream home in the state.

Steve Lapinski

Casino Editor

Last updated: 2025-09-11

Fact checked by:

Chad Nagel

Sports & Betting Editor

6 minutes read

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Table of Contents

Playtech Says California and Sweeps Casinos Don't Matter

On Thursday's H1 2025 earnings call, Playtech made sure to minimize their activity in the USA sweepstakes casino industry, calling their involvement in the industry "immaterial" when looked at in the context of their overall U.S. business.

Playtech's CEO Mor Weizer and CFO Chris McGinnis provided the info to investors on September 11, just days after the company announced that it was no longer providing game content to sweepstakes casino players in California. The state has been a hotbed of activity lately, including a high-profile lawsuit against Stake and game suppliers, plus a strong push to pass a sweepstakes casino ban in the state legislature.

CFO McGinnis was the one to call the sweepstakes activity "immaterial," and added that the industry accounts for just around 1% of the company's revenues and in the "single-digit millions" in revenue.

CEO Weizer stated that Playtech's approach has always been conservative when it comes to sweepstakes casino products, adding that they only work with a few large operators and with some contentious states restricted.

There were some other takeaways from the Playtech earnings call, including that total U.S. revenue had more that doubled in the first half of 2025 versus the same period in 2024. Driving the increased revenue were new or extended offerings with large operators like FanDuel and DraftKings.

Live casino revenue went through the roof, rising 300% during the period.

Despite all the great news with respect to the U.S. market, Playtech says that they are still "years away" from profitability in the USA.

Arizona Shuts Down Dream Home Sweepstakes

Calling it "illegal gambling," the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) has sent a cease-and-desist to UK-based company Raffall and a still unnamed Arizona resident for their "Phoenix Dream Home Sweepstakes."

According to regulators, the sweepstakes with the $1.3 million "Dream Home" prize required people to buy their entries. The sweepstakes promised either a cash payout or the dream home prize, depending on the ticket volume sold.

The regulators also found that its organizers were trying to profit from the sales of tickets.

Together, these factors constitute "illegal gambling" under Arizona laws.

Arizona law only allows charities and tax-exempt organizations to conduct raffles. No personal profit is permitted. Furthermore, the dream home sweepstakes was accessible to Arizonans under the age of 21.

Potential felonies associated with sweepstakes like this one include Promotion of Gambling, Illegal Control of an Enterprise, and Money Laundering.

We will let you know once there is more to report on this story.

Steve LapinskiCasino Editor

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.