In early 2026, the intersection of online gambling and digital media took a significant turn as X (formerly Twitter) updated its content policies to prohibit paid partnerships involving casino gambling, sports betting, and related commercial promotions.
The move has sent ripples through the iGaming industry, challenging how brands, affiliates, and influencers reach potential players in an increasingly competitive market.
At the same time, the broader U.S. online gambling industry remains complex, with legal frameworks varying widely by state and many players still turning to offshore gambling platforms to access a broader array of services.
Online Casino Gambling in the U.S.
Online casino gambling in the United States continues to evolve under a patchwork of state-level regulations that govern where and how players can legally wager.
Domestic online casinos are regulated in a small number of states, including well-established markets such as New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Delaware, Connecticut, West Virginia, and Rhode Island, with others considering legislation to expand online gaming access.
These regulated platforms operate under strict licensing regimes designed to ensure player protection, responsible gambling safeguards, and tax compliance.
Even where regulated online casino gaming exists, the U.S. market is not yet uniform. Unlike online sports betting, which has rapidly expanded following the 2018 Supreme Court decision overturning the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), iGaming (real-money online casino games) has grown more slowly, bowing to the greater regulatory complexity and divergent state-level approaches.
This regulatory unevenness has helped offshore gambling sites maintain a strong presence in the U.S. market. Licensed in jurisdictions like Curaçao or the Isle of Man, offshore gaming platforms have long catered to American players by offering extensive game libraries, competitive bonuses, and access from nearly all states regardless of local licensing status. Users in states without legal online casinos often choose these sites because they provide options that domestic markets do not yet offer.
New Social Media Restrictions: X Bans Paid Gambling Partnerships
In a notable shift for digital marketing within the iGaming space, X has revised its Paid Partnerships policy to explicitly ban commercial collaborations tied to gambling and sports betting.
The updated rules prohibit creators from labeling any compensated gambling promotion, including affiliate commissions, referral codes, or brand‑ambassador deals, as a paid partnership on the platform. This change means influencers, creators, and affiliates can no longer use X’s paid promotion tags to disseminate gambling content, effectively limiting the organic reach of such posts.
The policy revision is part of a broader recalibration of content standards on X, following growing scrutiny over how gambling-related content appears in user feeds. Industry observers note the changes will force operators and marketers to rethink their digital strategies as they navigate new limitations on one of the most widely used platforms for audience engagement.
Creators who once relied on affiliate links shared via X now face reduced monetization options, while operators may need to diversify marketing spend across platforms with more permissive policies, including Telegram, Discord, Instagram, and TikTok.