Online gambling is something lots of people love to do. And so, its big business. Which makes it a complex industry with lots of different businesses providing services and taking cuts from the pie. Plus, of course, the winners. Although the house always wins in the long run, gambling is one of the few sectors where giving money back to customers is an expected part of the daily business. So who really does make money from the global gambling business? And how much?
This piece will discuss most of the key players, from, well, the players, right up to the gambling CEOs and then everyone in between. Of which there are more than you might think. Plus a look at how much an online gambling business costs to run, and who the very richest people in the game are.
Payouts to Players are More than You Might Think
In the US in 2024, the total sports betting handle (amount wagered) was $150 billion. Operators held on to $14.2 billion of that, or just shy of 10%. And that was considered a good year in the business. Obviously, a lot of people lose. And this includes plenty of people who won and then lost it all back. But if someone tells you sports bettors never win, point them out this fact.
On the other hand, the house edge is much higher in casino gambling like slots. But, some lucky people do still win big. Estimates suggest tens of thousands of people around the world each year win a million dollars or more from gambling jackpots.
The point is, legitimate, well known casinos and sportsbooks aren’t scams. They don’t need need to be. They figured out how to pay back enough players to keep people interested, while ensuring they make a profit at the end of the year anyway. Which is not to mention online poker rooms, betting exchanges or prediction markets, which simply take a cut for facilitating players gambling with each other.
Licensed and regulated gambling operators in the US also pay taxes, which benefits states and local authorities, as well as employing tens of thousands of people across the country.
Game Providers, Tech Partners and Employees Take Their Fees
After paying out for winning players, online gambling operators then have to pay out to their partners. Only a rare few online casinos can run most things in house, but even those usually have to pay payment processors and employ people.
On top of those, other groups that get a cut of the profits include:
- Game developers
- Security and geolocation providers
- Licensing fees and taxes
- Marketing and advertising agencies
- Web hosting and back end tech providers
- Streamers or celebrity promotional partners
To launch an online casino in say – Michigan – would set you back anywhere between $1 million to $10 million, accounting for all these different people that would be involved at some stage of the enterprise.
Tax rates vary dramatically between regions. In some American states, such as New York, sports betting operators pay 50% on their profits as taxes. In the US winning gamblers are also subject to income taxes. For example when Edwin Castro became the record $2 billion US lottery jackpot winner in 2023, he “only” got $858 million. That was after he paid all the taxes and a large fee for choosing the prize as a lump sum over an annuity.
The Rest is Profit – Who are the Richest Gambling Entrepreneurs?
After paying out all those people, from players to employees to the government, the owners of the company get to take the rest.
The richest positions in the gambling business, are, loosely in this order:
- Gambling streamers and influencers
- Top (1%) professional poker players
- CEOs and high level management at online gambling companies
- The very top (0.1%) of sports bettors
- Shareholders and board members
- Owners of the very largest private gambling companies
The richest person in gambling in 2026, is, undoubtedly the multibillionaire Miriam Adelson. Who will have limited exposure to online gambling, as her company Las Vegas Sands mostly operates mega casino resorts in Asia. However, those huge gambling and hospitality operations have made her an estimated net worth of $39 billion.
Second will be Denise Coates, the British founder of online gambling giant bet365. She turned her families small chain of local betting shops into a multibillion dollar global online business, and has been in some years the UK’s biggest individual tax payer.
Other people high up in the gambling wealth list include poker pro Phil Ivey ($100 million), poker pro turned gambling entrepreneur Tony G ($300 million), and sports betting syndicate founder Tony Bloom ($1 billion).
The latter became one of the richest people in gambling by creating a complex algorithm that beat the sportsbooks at their own game. He had to create a secretive syndicate giving other people bets to use, as he got such incredible results bookmakers often declined his personal custom.
Bloom has since turned his gambling money (and predictive algorithm) to sports. He bought English soccer club Brighton & Hove Albion and turned them from a lower league team into a consistent Premier League force.
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