Sports betting spending in 2025 topped $166 billion in wagers

Sports betting spending in 2025 reached about $166 billion in wagers by Americans, Fortune reported, underscoring how quickly legal wagering has become a major consumer activity. The figure matters because it exceeds the combined annual revenue cited for several large entertainment sectors, even though betting handle is not the same as money lost by consumers.

Fortune compared the sports betting total with about $70 billion in combined revenue from the North American box office, recorded music, live music, book publishing and U.S. museums. ScreenDaily reported the North American box office at $8.87 billion in 2025, while the Recording Industry Association of America put recorded music revenue at $11.5 billion. Fortune also cited Mordor Intelligence for $18.51 billion in live music revenue, the Association of American Publishers for $14.6 billion in publisher revenue and IBISWorld for an estimated $16.4 billion from museums.

How much did Americans bet on sports in 2025?

Americans placed roughly $166 billion in sports bets in 2025, according to Fortune. Victor Matheson, a Holy Cross economist who studies sports gambling, told Fortune that the published total is likely too low because some tribal casino betting, including in Florida, Washington and Wisconsin, does not have to be publicly disclosed.

Matheson estimated Florida alone may account for $5 billion to $10 billion in betting handle not captured in public totals. Fortune also reported that prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, which have expanded into sports contracts after gaining federal regulatory clearance, could add another $50 billion to $100 billion in activity, according to Matheson.

Put together, Fortune reported, legal sportsbooks, unreported tribal betting and sports-related prediction markets could bring total U.S. sports wagering volume near $300 billion. That would work out to roughly $1,000 in legal sports bets per adult, the publication reported.

Handle means the total amount wagered, not what sportsbooks keep. Fortune reported that more than 90% of sports betting handle is returned to bettors as winnings, meaning $1,000 in bets translates to about $100 in average losses per adult.

Who is losing money on sports betting?

Matheson told Fortune the average loss does not show the main risk because losses are concentrated among a small group. He said about 95% of total losses are borne by 5% of bettors, a pattern he described as a problem.

Martin “Marty” Conway, an adjunct lecturer in Georgetown University’s Sports Industry Management program and a former executive at Major League Baseball, the Baltimore Orioles, the Texas Rangers and AOL, told Fortune that betting platforms use customer data to keep heavy users engaged. He said promotional offers, including free-bet advertising, are used to draw inactive users back.

The legal market grew rapidly after the Supreme Court struck down the federal sports betting ban in 2018. Fortune reported that wagering rose from $6.6 billion that year to $166 billion in 2025.

Matheson told Fortune the growth resembles the U.K. market, where sports betting has long been legal and averages about $1,000 per adult per year. He said states including New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Colorado and Arizona are already above that level in handle per person.

What makes sports betting different from older gambling?

Fortune reported that sports betting has attracted young, college-educated men who had not been central to traditional gambling markets. Matheson told the publication that sports bettors may believe their knowledge gives them control, even though betting lines already reflect available information.

Conway told Fortune that parlays, live in-game wagers and player prop bets have turned betting into a separate form of sports engagement. Matheson said it remains unclear whether average betting losses are directly reducing spending on movies, concerts or other entertainment, though he pointed to declining lottery sales in some online sports betting states as clearer evidence of substitution within gambling.

Fortune also cited a New York Fed study finding higher credit card delinquencies among millennials and Gen Z in states with legal sports betting. A U.S. News and World Report survey cited by Fortune found that one-quarter of sports bettors said they worry they cannot control their gambling.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.