VGW Pulls Sweeps Coins in Tennessee
VGW, the company behind Chumba Casino, LuckyLand Slots, and Global Poker, is phasing out Promotional Play across its Tennessee brands after what it calls “careful consideration.”
In a statement to players, VGW said they’ll still be able to enjoy their favorite games in Gold Coin, free-to-play mode, and that the company is “100 percent focused” on making the transition as smooth as possible. The company also conceded that some players “may be disappointed” after several years of real-prize sweepstakes in the state.
For Tennessee users, the key dates are:
- November 24, 2025 – No more ways to collect Sweeps Coins (no login rewards, no promos, no mail-ins).
- December 23, 2025 – Final day to use Sweeps Coins for gameplay.
- January 20, 2026 – Last day to redeem Sweeps Coins for cash; after that, they’re gone.
The move comes just weeks after VGW pulled its sweeps model from West Virginia, adding Tennessee to a growing list of states where its sweepstakes products are no longer available.
Tennessee Turns Up the Heat on Sweeps and Unlicensed Operators
VGW’s timing isn’t accidental. Tennessee’s Sports Wagering Council has been steadily tightening the screws on platforms it views as illegal sports gaming or sweepstakes-style betting.
On October 23, the council announced that three more groups had exited the state:
- BetWhale.ag, an offshore sportsbook, which closed after a cease-and-desist and a $50,000 fine
- Kickr, a social/sweepstakes sports gaming platform
- ReBet, another sweeps-style sports operator
They joined a longer list of sweepstakes-style brands bowing out of Tennessee, including Thrillzz, KicKr, Sportzino, and Legendz (which pulled its sports betting product but still runs casino-style games).
Regulators have been blunt: just because an app is available in Tennessee doesn’t mean it’s authorized. When legal sportsbooks are taking $5.6 billion in bets in a year, Tennessee doesn’t have much interest in sharing the field with unlicensed or sweeps-style operators.
The Tennessee Timeline: Use Your Sweeps While You Still Can
Here’s the roadmap Tennessee players now have to follow, and it’s not a long one:
- November 24, 2025: No more acquiring Sweeps Coins. Not through bonuses, not through logins, not through purchases, not through mail-ins. The tap shuts off completely.
- December 23, 2025: Last day to use Sweeps Coins for gameplay. After this date, Sweeps Coin play becomes a memory.
- January 20, 2026: Final day to redeem Sweeps Coins for cash prizes. After that, Sweeps Coins go the way of expired coupons — still in your drawer, but worth exactly zero.
VGW says it’s “100 percent focused” on keeping players informed and making the transition smooth. That may be true, but let’s be honest: for players, this is one of those “redeem it or regret it” moments.
VGW’s Multi-State Retreat
What’s happening in Tennessee isn’t isolated, it’s part of VGW’s year of exits.
In the last several months alone, VGW has:
- Ended Chumba and LuckyLand Casino play in New Jersey
- Stopped offering sweepstakes in New York
- Pulled sweepstakes play from West Virginia
- And now is cutting off sweepstakes in Tennessee
This is no longer “a few tough states.” This is a pattern, it’s a four-state retreat by the largest sweeps operator in the country.
For a long time, sweepstakes casinos operated in the gray area with coins, bonuses, and legal disclaimers holding the whole thing together. Now regulators are starting to question whether that setup is really any different from standard online gambling.
And companies like VGW are realizing the gray area isn’t so gray anymore.
What It Means for the Sweeps Industry
This is more than VGW, there’s a bigger story here.
For years, plenty of states basically looked the other way. Now, they’re not. Between New York, New Jersey, West Virginia, and now Tennessee, VGW’s pullbacks show a key trend: When regulators start enforcing actual gambling definitions, the sweeps model gets shaky fast.
Tennessee didn’t pass a new law. It just started using the rules it already had and applied them to newer platforms. Other states can do the same—and some already are.
Blaise Luis
