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The Washington State Gambling Commission has issued a cease and desist notice to unlicensed Calcutta billiards operator Victory’s Auction Pro.
Victory’s Auction Pro is alleged to be an organization running illegal Calcutta billiards tournaments in Washington. The Washington State Gambling Commission started the process of blocking its operations with an initial cease and desist notice on October 10.

Calcutta billiards tournaments and Victory’s Auction Prohttps://t.co/xYEgo6R96n
— WA Gambling Comm (@WAGambling) October 10, 2025

What is Calcutta billiards?
The organization is thought to have been running auction-pool wagering games as part of a wider tournament. In Calcutta billiards, the tournament prize pot and the Calcutta pot are separate pots of differing amounts.
The Calcutta refers to a side pot where players are betting money on the game in the hopes of receiving more than what they put in. That means bettors can bid on other players, with the highest bidder winning the rights to that player. Payouts are then calculated based on the player’s performance in the tournament.
These types of Calcutta wagering systems are illegal in Washington State, both for Victory’s Auction Pro and any participants – even if they don’t know they are wagering illegally. The punishment for illegal gambling in the state can range from a gross misdemeanor to a class B felony, with penalties ranging from one to 10 years in prison and fines of between $5,000 and $20,000.
The investigation from the Washington State Gambling Commission also claims that Victory’s Auction Pro is advertising its Calcutta billiards tournaments online and on social media via Facebook and other platforms. That also puts Victory’s Auction Pro in violation of a separate law, transmitting gambling information over the internet, which would be a class C felony if found guilty. The punishment for this charge could be as much as an additional prison sentence of up to five years and fines of up to $10,000.
Washington’s gambling laws have recently been under closer inspection after a dispute between the state and Washington tribes.
Featured image: Pexels
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The state of Massachusetts has filed a brief in opposition to financial services company Robinhood filing its own motion.
After Robinhood filed a motion for a preliminary injunction, Massachusetts filed an opposing brief in response. The company had asked a judge last month to grant it an injunction against the state bodies to block them “from enforcing preempted Massachusetts law against Robinhood for its facilitation of transactions involving sports-related event contracts.”
Now, Massachusetts has formally responded, arguing that Robinhood’s claim that sports betting has been legalized nationwide.

In a preview of its anticipated legal argument against Kalshi, Massachusetts has filed its brief in opposition to Robinhood’s motion for preliminary injunction. Here is its argument against federal preemption: pic.twitter.com/Bebt2iTa5y
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) October 11, 2025

“Robinhood’s smoke-and-mirrors arguments otherwise fail upon inspection, as two federal district courts have recently held,” reads the filing, as reported by sports betting lawyer David Wallach.
Robinhood is not an isolated case
The recent Crypto.com decision was referenced in support of the state’s argument, where the company was blocked from continuing to run sports bets in Nevada. This is part of a much wider push to regulate sports event contracts that seek to emulate sports betting.
While Kalshi has been working with regulatory bodies to launch sports-related services, the precedent doesn’t necessarily extend to all similar companies, as evidenced by Crypto.com and now potentially again by Robinhood. Massachusetts state bodies argue that there is repeated legal reinforcement “going back decades” that states have the right and responsibility to determine what forms of gambling are allowed.
“Robinhood argues that these laws were impliedly repealed when, under its narrative, Congress expanded the CEA to include swaps in 2010,” reads the filing. “But this Court does not imply repeal of a federal law, let alone multiple federal laws.”
With Massachusetts gearing up to launch a similar legal battle against Kalshi, this motion against Robinhood offers an example of the kinds of arguments the state is preparing to launch to guard against what it deems to be unlicensed sports betting. This comes after a wider crackdown on unlicensed gaming across the state.
Featured image: Robinhood
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