Pennsylvania Bettors File Class Action Lawsuit Against DraftKings Over Predatory Tactics

^{Is DraftKings messaging, seen here at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, targeting the most vulnerable bettors? A federal lawsuit says yes. (Photo: Rich Graessle / AP)}

Five Pennsylvania men have filed a class action lawsuit in federal court accusing DraftKings of using deceptive marketing and predatory tactics to exploit compulsive gamblers.

The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, was filed by Chicago-based civil rights law firm Loevy + Loevy. 

Lawsuit: DraftKings Targets Exploitable Players

The lawsuit argues that rather than extending help to those who are showing signs of problem gambling, DraftKings instead targets and exploits such players. The filing specifically mentioned “risk-free” bets and similar promotions as a strategy to hook those likely to lose significant money on their sports betting platforms.

“DraftKings is earning enormous amounts of revenue by misleading and addicting its users,” the lawsuit maintains. “DraftKings’ business model has long involved pushing the boundaries of the law, misleading consumers, and luring naïve gamblers into developing addictions.”

The filing also accuses DraftKings of using “VIP Hosts” to specifically target users with gambling problems, as well as using targeted marketing campaigns to maximize how much users will deposit and lose on their site.

“The company frequently targets users that are on state self-exclusion lists for addicted gamblers or users who have directly asked the company to suspend or close their accounts to prevent them from continuing to gamble,” the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit charges DraftKings with violating Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. The plaintiffs say that DraftKings is guilty of negligence, failure to warn, and conversion and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

The plaintiffs include individuals who have lost significant money on DraftKings. One, a Pittsburgh teacher, says he lost $134,000 on the site after borrowing money from loved ones to continue gambling. Another man from Allentown says that he was able to access DraftKings even after asking to shut down his account permanently, ultimately losing more than $350,000.

Legal Action Piling Up Against DraftKings 

This isn’t the first lawsuit filed against DraftKings by this law firm. Loevy + Loevy has also sued DraftKings on similar grounds in four other states, including New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and Kentucky. 

Those aren’t the only legal issues facing the online sports betting and gambling firm. In March 2025, DraftKings agreed to pay $10 million to settle a claim that it harmed users after selling non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for fantasy sports games hosting on its DraftKings Marketplace, which has since closed. 

In April 2025, Nerye Aminov filed another class action lawsuit against DraftKings, alleging that a deposit bonus offered by the company was “deceptive” and “nearly possible” to claim. And in November 2024, the firm paid a fine of $475,000 to Ohio regulators for multiple violations of sports betting law in the state.

Concerns over the spread of legal sports betting and the offerings at online gambling sites have led some lawmakers to propose legislation that would give the federal government more oversight over sportsbooks across the country.