Gen Z made up 34 percent and millennials 42 percent of all US betting activity in the second quarter of 2025, according to TransUnion’s US Betting Report. These younger demographics are engaging most actively in online sports betting, online casinos, and other digital-first wagering formats, making them the key contributors to overall growth.
The report indicates that 30 percent of US consumers engaged in betting during the period, up from 25 percent in the same quarter a year earlier. This rise is largely driven by the younger cohorts, who are accelerating adoption of gambling in the digital era. The report said that many of these bettors exhibit financial speculation behaviours beyond gambling, into cryptocurrency trading, stock speculation, and other high-risk investment formats.
TransUnion’s profiling of high-frequency bettors shows that Gen Z and millennial consumers are disproportionately urban renters, heavy users of mobile trading apps, and early adopters of crypto platforms, reinforcing the overlap between speculative finance and gambling participation.
Land-based still dominant, but online accelerating
While land-based casinos remain the most frequent destination, drawing 55 percent of bettors, the fastest gains are occurring online, especially among millennials. Online casinos climbed to 49 percent of respondents, online sportsbooks to 52 percent, and online lotteries to 41 percent. Land-based venues also saw growth: sports betting rose to 43 percent and lottery participation to 45 percent. Notably, millennials boosted activity across nearly every gambling vertical, while Gen Z’s engagement slipped in most areas, with only online sports betting posting a growth of seven percent.
Sports betting boom brings new risks
Sports betting has been one of the fastest-growing segments of the US gambling industry since the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), according to various reports. By game type, sports betting led the US online gambling market share in 2024, according to Mordor Intelligence, which provides industry analysis and consulting. Meanwhile, legal sports betting revenues jumped from just $248 million in 2017, when wagering was restricted to Nevada, to $13.7 billion in 2024, fuelled by operators such as DraftKings, FanDuel, and ESPN Bet.
The surge has not come without significant social costs. A study commissioned by Intuit Credit Karma, a finance company, and conducted by Qualtrics found that about 23 percent of respondents who bet on sports, or who had a partner who did, identified as addicts, while 22 percent reported financial distress tied to betting. Almost half (48 percent) said their gambling had caused mental health issues such as depression.
The study highlighted Gen Z as the most vulnerable demographic, with 37 percent of respondents in this group describing themselves as addicted. This is 14 percent higher than the average across all ages. Experts point to the ease of online betting, which removes barriers of friction, as a factor fuelling risky behaviour. Complementing these findings, a study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association reported a 23 percent increase in US Google searches for terms related to gambling addiction over the past eight years, underscoring the growing public health challenge linked to the betting boom.
The debt headwind: growth meets financial fragility
The report further notes that the youthful surge in wagering is shadowed by growing financial stress. Millennials’ monthly debt payments rose by 20 percent year-on-year, and Gen Z’s jumped by 27 percent, significantly outstripping inflation (six percent) and wage growth (eight percent). Much of this burden stems from student loans, credit card balances, and escalating cost-of-living pressures.
“I strongly encourage all states and tribes to set twenty-one as the minimum age for all gambling.”
– Keith Whyte, founder of Safer Gambling Strategies LLC
A recent Associated Press report notes that Gen Z has seen the steepest decline in average credit scores over the past year, largely due to resumption of student loan delinquency reporting (average score now 676). Meanwhile, an Investopedia analysis shows that younger Americans increasingly cite tariffs and inflationary pressures as drivers of rising debt burdens and diminishing disposable income. Given that discretionary income is a strong predictor of gambling spend, the combination of heightened debt and waning consumer confidence presents a significant obstacle to the sustainability of growth from these demographics.
Shift in regulatory approach?
Regulators are beginning to respond. States such as New Jersey have proposed or implemented new responsible gaming frameworks for licensed online operators. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has published a new set of proposed regulations that would make responsible gambling (RG) measures mandatory for licensed operators in the Garden State.
Keith Whyte, founder of Safer Gambling Strategies LLC, told SiGMA News that New Jersey’s shift from voluntary to mandatory standards is “extremely important because it helps create a standardised and safer experience for all gamblers in New Jersey. Raising and formalising their standards shows leadership and provides a template for other states to follow.”
He also stressed that the state still lacks a universal self-exclusion system across all gambling verticals. Advocating for setting 21 as the minimum age for all gambling, he also encouraged jurisdictions to voluntarily prohibit play from those younger. “This makes youth addiction prevention messaging more consistent and reduces risk among the vulnerable eighteen to twenty-one cohort.”
Industry voices argue that while youth engagement offers near-term gains, stronger protective measures and sustainable practices will be essential to avoid overexposure and long-term attrition.
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