Chumba Casino Parent Company Facing Class-Action Lawsuit

Virtual Gaming Worlds, the company that operates sweepstakes casinos like Chumba Casino, is facing a class action lawsuit. The plaintiffs allege that VGW is running illegal gambling platforms. 

The plaintiffs are suing on behalf of their spouses. 

Details on the Suit 

In all, there are five plaintiffs, each from a different state, including Montana, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. They filed the lawsuit in the US District Court of Montana on April 28. 

The suit alleges VGW, which runs Chumba Casino, LuckyLand Slots, and Global Poker, violated gambling laws by providing games in states where online gambling isn’t permitted. 

One of the plaintiffs, John Brown, is suing on behalf of his wife, Courtney Brown, who lost $33,600 between September 2024 and March 2025. The other four plaintiffs are also claiming losses. 

Sweepstakes casinos operate on a model in which there are two currencies, commonly referred to as “Gold Coins” and “Sweeps Coins.” The name can change depending on the site, but the premise is the same. 

Gold Coins are meant to be “for fun” and cannot be redeemed for cash value. However, sweepstakes coins can be. No purchase is necessary to play on these platforms, but coin bundle purchases are available. 

Thus, players may create an account, make purchases, use the coins, and then win or lose. 

VGW operates in the United States, but the headquarters is in Australia and has other entities in places like Malta. 

In the lawsuit, plaintiffs are citing the following laws: 

• Montana Code Annotated § 23-5-131
• Illinois Compiled Statutes 720 ILCS 5/28-8
• Kentucky Revised Statutes §§ 372.020 and 372.040
• Ohio Revised Code §§ 3763.02 and 3763.04
• Tennessee Code §§ 29-19-104 and 29-19-105

Other VGW Lawsuits

In addition to this case, there’s an ongoing one against VGW titled “Eric A Knapp v VGW.” This suit was transferred to Delaware in February. 

VGW recently ended its operations in Delaware following a cease-and-desist letter. 

There have also been pushes from state legislators to halt sweepstakes casinos. 

For example, Montana recently passed SB555, which doesn’t name sweepstakes casinos outright, but the language would limit the model in which these online platforms operate. That’ll go into effect on October 1, 2025.