End of the Journey
Minnesota just told some of the biggest names in sweepstakes gaming to pack their bags.
On November 5, Attorney General Keith Ellison announced that his office had sent letters to 14 online gambling operators, including sweepstakes casinos VGW’s LuckyLand Slots, Zula Casino, and Fortune Coins, ordering them to stop offering their products in the state.
Ellison says the sites “may violate Minnesota consumer-protection laws that prohibit deceptive, fraudulent, unfair or unconscionable practices.”
The operators now have until December 1, 2025 to confirm in writing that they’ve shut off Minnesota players. If they don’t, the AG is ready to move from letters to lawsuits.
For the sweeps space, this isn’t a vague policy note. It’s a date on the calendar.
How LuckyLand, Zula and Fortune Coins Ended Up on the List
The letters are the result of a joint investigation between Ellison’s office and the state’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement (AGE) Division. AGE had already warned the same operators back in June, flagging potential criminal law issues and asking them to stop operating in Minnesota.
This time, the AG is naming names. The list includes:
- LuckyLand Slots (VGW)
- Zula Casino
- Fortune Coins
- plus offshore books and casinos like Bovada, BetOnline, MyBookie and others.
In other words, Minnesota is putting sweeps casinos and offshore gambling sites in the same bucket, not treating sweeps as some softer, social category off to the side.
There’s one more wrinkle. AGE also warned Stake.us, McLuck and Golden Hearts Games earlier this year, but Ellison’s new letter doesn’t mention them, and all three still list Minnesota as an eligible state. For now, the heat is on LuckyLand, Zula and Fortune Coins.
Ellison’s View: Sweeps Casinos = Illegal Lotteries
The AG’s sweeps letter doesn’t spend much time on branding. It goes straight at the dual-currency model.
Minnesota describes “social sweepstakes casino websites” as platforms that:
- Offer casino-style games like slots, poker and roulette.
- Use a two-coin system of virtual currency.
- Let players buy virtual currency that can be redeemed for cash or prizes (such as gift cards).
From there, the logic is pretty straightforward. Under Minnesota’s gambling law, a lottery is anything that mixes a prize, chance, and payment to take part.
If you’re buying virtual coins for a shot at cash or prizes, Ellison’s office says you’ve hit all three. In the letter’s words, on a site where consumers purchase virtual currency for the chance to win cash or rewards, “these elements are satisfied.”
“Play for Free” Gets Taken Apart
Ellison doesn’t stop at gambling law, he attacks the marketing too.
The sites shout “play for free”, but, in his words, the games are “designed to draw players into buying virtual currency for a chance to win cash prizes or other rewards.”
He calls the two-currency setup a “thinly veiled attempt” to make paid gambling look like free entertainment and says those banners can easily give people the impression the sites are legal in Minnesota when the state thinks they’re not.
On top of that, Ellison points to Minnesota’s consumer-protection laws on fraud, false promises and deceptive practices, saying that it gives his office plenty to work with if this turns into a court fight. I know a threat when I see one.
The Deadline, and What Happens After
The operators have been given a simple choice. By December 1, they have to confirm in writing that they’ve stopped serving Minnesota, or brace for the consequences.
Ellison says his office can ask a court to block access for Minnesota players, force companies to return money they’ve made from state residents, and seek civil penalties of up to $25,000 per violation, plus attorney fees and costs.
For LuckyLand, Zula and Fortune Coins, that’s not just background noise. It’s a real calculation: is Minnesota a market you fight for, or one you quietly geoblock and leave behind?
Minnesota Isn’t Acting Alone
If this feels familiar, it’s because other attorneys general have already started clearing sweeps operators out of their own backyards.
In New York, AG Letitia James announced in June that her office had shut down 26 sweepstakes casinos, accusing them of offering casino games and sports betting with virtual coins that could be turned into cash and prizes.
In West Virginia, AG JB McCuskey fired off 47 subpoenas to sweeps operators, and more than 20 brands have since left the state.
In Louisiana, AG Liz Murrill issued a formal opinion that dual-currency sweeps casinos count as illegal gambling, and the Revenue Department followed up with lawsuits seeking tens of millions of dollars in unpaid taxes from VGW and WOW Vegas.
Minnesota is now joining that club with its own twist: calling sweeps casinos illegal lotteries and treating “play for free” not as a safety blanket, but as part of the consumer-protection problem.
What It Means for Sweeps Operators and Affiliates
For LuckyLand, Zula and Fortune Coins, the immediate choice is pretty simple: either exit Minnesota and block state traffic, or try to argue their model fits Minnesota law and risk becoming the test case everyone else reads about.
Because all three operate across most of the U.S., whatever they do next won’t just matter locally. If they quietly walk away, it reinforces a pattern that’s already forming in other states: when an attorney general puts it in writing, sweeps brands leave.
For affiliates and creators, it’s pretty straightforward: after December 1, promoting these brands to Minnesota players means sending them to sites the AG has already said shouldn’t be operating in the state. A lot of people will just decide it’s not worth the hassle.
For the rest of the sweeps space, Ellison’s wording like “illegal lottery,” “thinly veiled attempt,” “mislead consumers” is the kind of wording other attorneys general can copy-paste into their own letters if they decide to follow Minnesota’s lead.
The Bottom Line
Minnesota isn’t interested in labels anymore. In Ellison’s eyes, social sweepstakes casinos are illegal lotteries dressed up as free-to-play apps, and the dual-currency setup doesn’t change that.
LuckyLand, Zula and Fortune Coins now have a hard deadline and a simple choice: Get out or face the consequences.
Blaise Luis
