Techme101.com

DraftKings Inc. (DraftKings) and NBCUniversal (NBC) have entered into a new sports sponsorship deal that marks a new era for the betting company on the network’s many licensed channels and media.
The deal provides access to cross-platform integrations for the betting provider across the NBA, NFL, NCAA, PGA Tour, and Premier League, among other properties available as part of the new agreement.
DraftKings and NBCUniversal deal
This is the largest sports broadcasting deal DraftKings has entered into with a single media provider to date. Making the betting operator synonymous with one broadcaster for their coverage will be featured across the calendar year for all sporting events available to subscribers.
The news of this deal bolsters the rosy figures for DraftKings, which reported a 37% annual increase in Q2 in August. We covered the spike in earnings for the national betting provider, with DraftKings’ Chief Executive Officer and co-founder, Jason Robins, commenting that the deal was in line with their 2025 goals.
“We set records for revenue, net income, and Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter, driven by an acceleration in revenue growth to 37% year-over-year,” he said of the $408 million betting boon.
NBC tentpole events available to DraftKings
“Our presence throughout NBCUniversal’s sports ecosystem will not only engage fans in powerful new ways but also augment our industry-leading live betting capabilities. Together, we will deliver a customer experience that moves at the speed of sports, bringing the thrill of NBA and other top action to life,” commented Stephanie Sherman, Chief Marketing Officer at DraftKings.
NBC has a number of events that the company regards as its “tentpoles.” These include Super Bowl LX, NBA All-Star Weekend, and the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
These flagship sporting milestones will also be available for DraftKings to utilize branded assets and receive an exclusive pathway to content and betting offers related to broadcasting.
Executive Vice President, NBC Sports, Sports & Olympics, Advertising and Partnerships, Peter Lazarus said, “Combining our excellence in sports entertainment with DraftKings’ industry-leading capabilities will transform the viewer experience just as NBCUniversal prepares to bring an unprecedented slate of sports programming to fans everywhere.”
DraftKings changes tact for Responsible Gambling Month
DraftKings has been adjusting its marketing strategies following the filing of a class action lawsuit against the company’s advertising practices in May 2025.
Since then, the NFL season has seen a softer approach from the betting brand, with a responsible gambling focus in their broadcast media and events.
This also coincides with Responsible Gambling Month across the nation, prompting Lori Kalani, Chief Responsible Gaming Officer at DraftKings, to state, “We are committed to providing customers with tools that support responsible play and enhance their experience.”
This is a big time for DraftKings, having acquired the keys to the broadcast kingdom on the back of record quarterly figures.
Featured image: NBCUniversal/DraftKings.
The post NBCUniversal and DraftKings pen new sports sponsorship deal appeared first on ReadWrite.

Sidepot Casino has decided to relocate out of Arizona after the state tightened its restrictions on sweepstakes casinos.
The Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) has been relentless in tightening overall gambling rules across 2025. Sweepstakes casinos have been the target of recent correspondence that has left many operators looking for the exit door.
Sidepot Casino, run by Fliff.inc, has been the seventh outfit to leave the state amid the regulatory push.
Sidepot exits the Arizona market
As we reported earlier this month (September 2025), the ADG issued a cease-and-desist order to Raffall. This came on the back of the operator promoting sweepstakes prizes, and the company’s links to external countries of operation were deemed a direct breach of state gaming laws.
Director of the Arizona Department of Gaming, Jackie Johnson, said, “Illegal gambling can take many forms, and it does not matter if it is labeled a sweepstakes, raffle, giveaway, or drawing.”

TODAY: ADG Issues Cease-and-Desists on“Phoenix Dream Home Sweepstakes”
ADG has issued cease-and-desist orders to Raffall, a company based in the United Kingdom, and to an Arizona resident using the platform.
Full news release: https://t.co/g9Ogzm5Hsx pic.twitter.com/FNHIDAJG4f
— Arizona Department of Gaming (@AzGaming) September 9, 2025

Sidepot Casino has become the latest figure of scrutiny for the ADG, and the operator has decided to withdraw. Betty Sweeps, Pulz, and Thrillzz were also involved in the cease communications from the regulator in August, with all of the other respective parties deciding to cut their losses.
ADG shifts focus to prediction markets
The ADG has now shifted its focus to another emerging gambling boom, driven by the prediction market rush across America. These new forms of gambling are currently living in the legal limbo of federal certification, with most, if not all, prediction providers falling under the protection and status of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).
The CEA, in collaboration with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has identified a list of legal loopholes that currently enable prediction markets to operate across state lines.
This is in contrast to traditional betting providers, which must pay heavy licensing fees to operate in a state, much to their chagrin.
We reported that Kalshi has also taken on the California Tribes, stating that the ability for users to place bets on Tribal Lands is protected by the CEA and a select portion of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).
So the battle between the ADG and prediction markets looks to be another front in their protracted war against their definition of providers who breach The Copper State’s legislature.
Featured image: Canva.
The post Sidepot Casino departs Arizona amid sweepstakes crackdown appeared first on ReadWrite.

Kalshi, the leading North American prediction market, argues that the location of placed bets does not contradict the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).
The outcome betting provider has been involved in courtroom battles with the Blue Lake Rancheria, Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians, and Chicken Ranch Rancheria of the Me-Wuk Indians (the California Tribes) since July 2025.
Kalshi is in a heated debate with California Tribes
We reported that the tribes had been in a protracted legal debate with Kalshi, and the Ho Chunk Nation has been vocal in its derision of the betting operator.
Saying, “While masquerading as novel commodities and futures products, these event contracts are, substantively, nothing more than illegal, unregulated wagers on the outcomes of sporting events.”

BREAKING: Three federally recognized California Indian tribes have sued Kalshi and Robinhood in CA federal court, alleging that the two companies are unlawfully engaging in sports betting by offering sports-outcome event contracts on the tribes’ Indian lands in violation of IGRA. pic.twitter.com/renw1XBtjz
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) July 23, 2025

Kalshi claims that the company’s partnership with co-defendants Robinhood Markets, Inc., and Robinhood Derivatives LLC (Robinhood) does not constitute a breach of the IGRA and has invoked a portion of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) to support its position that geography is not a concern for bets placed on its app.
Critics have seen the portion of the UIEGA being used as a flimsy defence, but Kalshi does fall under a specific branch of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).
This means the betting providers’ argument may exempt them, as wagering, specifically referred to as “bet or wager” through Kalshi, relates to “any transaction conducted on or subject to the rules of a registered entity or exempt board of trade under the CEA.”
Legal loophole gives Kalshi a sliver of hope
“Kalshi does not house servers on Indian lands. Kalshi does not employ personnel on Indian lands. Kalshi conducts no business whatsoever on Indian lands,” said the New York-based company.
This could mean that Kalshi is exempt as an exchange that falls under the CEA; however, critics point out that these possible technical and legal loopholes concerning the company are outdated, and that wagers can be placed on Tribal Lands via the Robinhood app, which would constitute a breach of the IGRA.
Kalshi also argued that it would suffer irreparable financial harm as a result of the injunction presented by the California Tribes in the U.S. District Court for the District of California.
The predictions provider stated that it would have to cease trading to regulate the location of bets placed to align the locations of Tribal Lands.
Whatever the outcome, the hearing on the possible injunction on 23 October 2025 is set to be a marquee affair and could lead to serious legal disputes over tribal relationships and the future of the IGRA.
Featured image: Canva
The post Kalshi argues that geography doesn’t matter in IGRA case appeared first on ReadWrite.