Although there are just a few U.S. States where Online Casinos are legally allowed, the U.S. Regulated Online Casino Market is currently the largest in terms of revenue generated by GGR, with a very high concentration of players. The growth rate has been consistently above 10% for years, so the market can be seen as a major driver of profit for those involved. To understand what drives the amount of market share an operator will have in 2026 and how they got there, we need to look deeper than the headlining numbers. We should examine product features, Brand Positioning and Cross-Sell opportunities. These three factors determine the true Value of the Customer.

The Legal Landscape: A Small but Mighty Market

The geography (the seven U.S. states where online casinos are currently allowed) is important before we discuss “market share”. Currently, there are only seven states in which online casino gaming is allowed:

New Jersey is the first state to allow all forms of gaming on line. It has been doing so since 2013; it also has the most substantial market size for Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR).

Pennsylvania was next with a launch date of June 29th 2019. Pennsylvanian iGaming is now the second largest GGR Market.

Michigan entered the fray on January 22nd 2021. It is currently the fastest growing GGR market based on Handle.

Connecticut allows iGaming as well, but its’ product offerings are smaller than those available in NJ or PA. Its growth rate has been steady.

West Virginia is the smallest legal iGaming market.

Delaware has only a few select games and the state runs them through its own platform.

Rhode Island recently became the seventh U.S. state to enter into an agreement allowing iGaming. This occurred when the Rhode Island General Assembly passed legislation to do so in May 2023.

In total these seven states have approximately 120 million adults. However, they account for about $9-$10 Billion dollars of iGaming gross gaming revenue in 2026. These numbers illustrate the value per player of iGaming versus sports betting. On average each iGaming customers will generate three to five times as much revenue as a customer who only bets on sports.

Overall Market Share: The Two-Operator Story

Operator	Est. iGaming Market Share (2026)	Key States	Parent Company
DraftKings Casino	~25%	NJ, PA, MI, CT, WV	DraftKings Inc. (DKNG)
BetMGM Casino	~24%	NJ, PA, MI, WV	MGM Resorts / Entain JV
FanDuel Casino	~18%	NJ, PA, MI, WV	Flutter Entertainment (FLUT)
Caesars Palace Online	~10%	NJ, PA, MI, WV	Caesars Entertainment
Golden Nugget Online	~8%	NJ, MI	DraftKings (acquired 2022)
Hard Rock Bet Casino	~5%	NJ, MI	Hard Rock International
Others	~10%	Varies	Various

DraftKings Casino: How It Built the Lead

DraftKings built its iGaming dominance through many years of strategic decision-making regarding products and partners.

DraftKings’ extensive portfolio of gaming products provides an effective framework upon which to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

DraftKings’ extensive portfolio of gaming products is the result of establishing direct content partnerships with almost all major providers (Pragmatic Play, Evolution Gaming, Net Entertainment, International Game Technology, Konami and dozens of smaller developers) to create a portfolio of slot and table games that exceed 1000 titles in DraftKings largest markets. A broader portfolio will attract more casino players; if a customer cannot find their favorite slot game on a particular platform they will simply choose another.

In addition to having a broad portfolio of casino games, several other aspects of DraftKings’ iGaming business have contributed to DraftKings success:

• Crown Rewards Program – А comprehensive loyalty program that allows users to earn points for both sports wagering and casino activities; therefore creating value for users to engage in multiple parts of the DraftKings offerings;
• DraftKings Live Dealer Studio – One of the first U.S. online gaming companies to create proprietary live dealer content; as opposed to white labeling third-party live dealers (such as Evolution Gaming);
• The In-App Experience – The DraftKings mobile app consistently rates as one of the highest rated apps within the App Store and Google Play. The app integrates both casino and sports wagering into a seamless user experience;

BetMGM: The Land-Based Advantage

MGM Resorts’ iGaming performance on BetMGM is the most obvious case in the U.S. market of how a well-known brick-and-mortar brand translates into an online environment. MGM Resorts owns some of the best known casinos worldwide – Bellagio, MGM Grand, Aria – and the brand equity that these brands offer does carry weight with players who are already part of MGM’s loyalty programs.

There are approximately 40 million people signed up for MGM Resorts’ land based loyalty program, MGM Rewards. If BetMGM could convert only a portion (any portion) of that number into BetMGM Casino Players (via digital outreach, matching rewards, M Life Tier recognition), this would be a significant customer acquisition channel that pure-play digital operators cannot duplicate. Acquiring a former casino customer is less expensive than acquiring a new casino customer; BetMGM has more former casino customers available to target than do all other companies.

In terms of product strengths for BetMGM in 2026:

• Live Dealer Products – The Company will use its partnership with Entain to create what will be among the largest live dealer products catalogs in the industry. This will leverage Entain’s experience with live dealers from Europe.
• Table Games Product Strength – Given its history as a land-based gaming operator, BetMGM will continue to develop and expand upon its table games offering. Its strength in table games offerings should remain competitive in each state where BetMGM offers its services.
• Progressive Jackpot Network – BetMGM will also provide a competitive progressive jackpot network across states where it offers services.
• BetMGM Poker – Although poker was a smaller portion of BetMGM’s overall business in 2026, it still remains a viable product in both New Jersey and Michigan and provides another opportunity for BetMGM to attract additional player types.

FanDuel Casino: The Sleeping Giant Waking Up

The real excitement in U.S. regulated gaming is FanDuel’s position. The company is #1 or tied for #1 in virtually all consumer metrics including Brand Recognition, App Ratings & Sports Betting Market Share. However, FanDuel ranks #3 in iGaming. This gap was created by a specific historical factor; FanDuel’s parent company, Flutter, built their international iGaming presence using European-based products (e.g., PokerStars, Betfair Casino & Paddy Power), which could not have easily been migrated into the regulated U.S. market.

To create a new iGaming product compliant with the regulations of each U.S. state takes time. It also requires negotiations with state regulators, establishing relationships with game content providers, etc. As such, FanDuel has had to play “catch up” since Michigan became the first state to launch iGaming in 2021. Nevertheless, FanDuel has made progress in reducing this gap.

What will work in FanDuel’s favor:

• FanDuel has the largest U.S. sports betting customer base, providing them an advantage through a potential “cross-selling” opportunity compared to other operators;
• FanDuel has continued to grow its casino game offering, developing long-term relationships with top-tier game content providers;
• FanDuel’s parent company, Flutter, is building out a global Live Dealer Infrastructure and will continue to feed this infrastructure into their U.S.-based operations;
• FanDuel benefits from existing brand awareness among tens of millions of U.S. sports bettors;

Flutter’s management has specifically noted iGaming share gains as one of the company’s priorities for both 2026 and 2027. While the goal may be modest at best, closing the gap between FanDuel’s 45% share of the sports betting marketplace and its 18% share of the iGaming marketplace would provide significant revenue opportunities. There are many analysts who follow the U.S. iGaming industry closely and believe FanDuel will challenge DraftKings & BetMGM’s leadership positions over the next couple of years.

State-by-State Market Dynamics

State	Market Leader	Notable Dynamic
New Jersey	BetMGM	Longest-running market; Golden Nugget historically strong
Pennsylvania	DraftKings	Rapid DK growth; strong parlay-to-casino cross-sell
Michigan	DraftKings	Tribal operators growing; fastest overall market growth
Connecticut	DraftKings / Mohegan Sun	Only two licensed operators; limited competition
West Virginia	DraftKings	Small market; DK dominates by default

What Drives Market Share: The Real Variables

Across all jurisdictions and all iGaming operators there are consistent underlying factors driving iGaming market share:

• The game library – An operator’s ability to provide an extensive collection of games, including exclusive slot offerings or “first look” content (e.g., new content before it launches elsewhere) from leading suppliers drives measurable market share gains at launch
• Quality of Live Dealers – While many markets are powered by Evolution Gaming, the way each operator has chosen to implement their Live Dealer offering can result in very significant differences
• Application Performance – Application performance metrics such as load times, bet settlement speeds and cashier functionality will have a direct impact on player retention
• Loyalty & Rewards – Players who are made to feel valued tend to churn less than those players that do not receive loyalty benefits. A unified cross-product rewards program remains the most effective tool for improving player retention
• Responsible Gambling Tools – As regulators increasingly scrutinize responsible gaming initiatives (including deposit limits, session reminders, self-exclusion mechanisms etc.), providing these types of tools become an additional competitive advantage

While the regulated U.S. online casino market in 2026 may be too young to experience significant changes in share distribution, it is also mature enough to allow a competitor to gain meaningful share if they make a sincere commitment to investing in their product (and not just promoting their brand).