Maine Casino Files Lawsuit Over “Racist” Tribal iGaming Launch

The Oxford Casino Hotel, one of two retail casino facilities in Maine, is suing the state over its online casino decision.

The casino and its owners are taking issue with the Maine Gambling Control Unit’s (MGCU) decision to allow the Wabanaki Nations the exclusive right to operate iGaming. That right was granted in LD 1164, which made Maine the eighth state with legalized online casino gambling earlier this month.

Gov. Janet Mills (D) allowed LD 1164 to become law without adding her signature.

Maine online casino lawsuit filed

The lawsuit was submitted in Maine’s U.S. District Court last Friday.

Maine’s new iGaming system was intended to provide the state with more gaming tax revenue. The state’s sports betting industry only produced $6.4 million in 2025, which is less than what many states produce in a single month.

Despite the state’s intent, Oxford Casino is arguing that restricting online casino operations to the Wabanaki sets an unfair and exclusionary system. It also says that the framework would create a monopoly based on race.

“Promoting iGaming through race-based preferences deals a gut-wrenching blow to Maine businesses like Oxford Casino that have heavily invested in the state and its people,” the lawsuit read.

The lawsuit continues to accuse Maine of violating the Equal Protection Clauses of the U.S. and Maine Constitutions, which state that the government cannot deny individuals equal protection under its laws. In other words, they cannot legally create a system that is discriminatory based on race. 

This issue dates back to 2023, when the state granted the Tribe the exclusive right to operate its sports betting market. Retail and online sportsbooks posted $66 million in profits last year, which were split with their sportsbook operators, DraftKings and Caesars.

The tribes hit back

Oxford Casino’s lawsuit didn’t solely object to the new iGaming framework because of its discriminatory nature. It also referenced a study commissioned by the National Association Against iGaming, which stated that launching iGaming could indirectly cost Maine 378 jobs, $22 million in labor income, and $60 million in total value.

That’s significant, since Oxford Casino employs 364 people as one of the state’s two casino locations.

Conversely, leaders of the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot, which are part of the Wabanaki Confederacy, say that the new iGaming market would address an existing monopoly maintained by the state’s retail casinos. 

“Wabanaki Tribes have been closed out of this market until Governor Mills initially supported the Tribes in Sports Betting and now iGaming,” wrote William Nicholas, chief of the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Motahkomikuk (Indian Township) in a statement. “For years out-of-state interests have been enriched in their monopoly and now are attacking Mainers who are here to support and keep Maine economics in Maine.”

Tribes in most states possess the authority to operate casinos on native land thanks to the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. However, that law does not apply to Maine, due to its 1980 land claims settlement.

Tribes unsuccessfully attempted to open a casino since at least 1994. Casino operators have also consistently opposed tribal gaming expansion in Maine.