Why Play in Sweepstakes Casinos?

Since time immemorial, casino operators have been playing whack a mole with authorities. This is one of the most regulated industries and has always been. Do you know how the "standard" slot symbols - the cherry, the melon, the grape - came to be? In the early 1900s, many states completely banned cash-paying slot machines.

Manufacturers changed the wheel symbols from card suits to fruits (cherries, melons) and rigged the machines to pay out flavored chewing gum instead of coins. If you hit three cherries, the machine gives you cherry gum, bypassing the anti-gambling laws entirely.

Today, another interesting loophole is in play. Traditional online gambling is illegal in most states. But, online gambling is defined by three things - chance, prize…and consideration (meaning you have to risk something of value, like cash, to play).

By completely removing "consideration," modern operators created Sweepstakes Casinos. Today, we’ll be looking at what those are and why it might be smarter playing in these instead of traditional, unregulated offshore casinos.

What are Sweepstakes Casinos?

Maybe you’ve heard of Baba Casino which is one of the best sweepstakes casino. If a sweepstake casino like this one removes 'consideration,' then technically, according to federal and state statutes, it's no longer considered gambling. It becomes a sweepstakes. A sweepstakes is defined as the act of winning an item based upon random selection (not skill-based) -- and it's no different than when you enter a drawing at your local grocery store.

How can these casinos generate revenue without players depositing their own money?

To accomplish this feat without losing money, casino operators separate their virtual economies into two distinctly separate currencies: Gold Coins and sweepstakes coins.

Gold Coins are exclusively for entertainment purposes. Gold Coins have absolutely no value outside of the sweepstakes platform itself. You can purchase them in bulk packages (i.e., 1 million gold coin packages) but you cannot redeem those Gold Coins for anything — whether it's for real cash or merchandise.

Sweepstakes coins cannot be purchased. Instead, they are provided for free to players as either a 'reward' when purchasing Gold Coins or by logging onto the site each day.

With sweepstakes coins being given to us for free — there is zero consideration required. If you use these sweepstakes coins to play games and win — those winnings can also be legally redeemed for real cash prizes.

Why play Sweepstakes Casinos?

So how do these casinos compare to standard online casinos or offshore casinos? The most important  difference is that these casinos are legal. As they operate within the sweepstakes statute framework, they are exempt from both state and federal level gaming bans and account freezes.

Unlike unregulated offshore casinos who can withhold your winnings without any legal recourse available to us, U.S-regulated sweepstakes casinos provide you with legal protections along with safe banking options to redeem your prizes.

And then they're true free-to-play. By statute, these platforms must provide a "No Purchase Necessary" option. Legally you can win real cash prizes solely based upon earning free sweepstakes coins via daily log-in bonus offers, social media contests/giveaways, etc. — all without ever risking your own money.

Banking, Access, and Variety

Beyond all the legality behind it, sweepstakes casinos are popular because they allow you to enjoy the casino games without any of the usual payment hurdles associated with regular ones. Since these casinos don't require any offshore gambling licenses, most of them accept regular methods of payments, including debit cards, PayPal, and even Apple Pay, unlike the crypto transfers and wire transfers that are usually offered by unlicensed offshore casinos. 

Also, the winnings are processed using the standard US banking system rails, which makes the processing faster and more straightforward than what you would see in unlicensed platforms. Since the sweepstakes casinos are working together with the same software studios that create licensed online casinos, there are thousands of slot games, table games, and even live dealer casino games available, sometimes even before the games are approved for play in the regulated jurisdictions. In addition, since the traditional regulated online casinos can only operate in a few jurisdictions, such as New Jersey, Michigan, or Pennsylvania, the sweepstakes casinos provide their services in almost all other states, including Texas, California, and Georgia, which still prohibit online casino gambling.

Low-Pressure Entry and Promotions

Bonus for logging in every day, giveaways on social media, and requests for sweepstakes coins through the mail all enable players to experience the site, learn the games, and earn a balance of coins without even having to use a credit card. 

For players who are just starting out, this makes a significant difference from how a regular casino works, which is deposit-first. This framework affects the nature of promotions that the operators offer, which are generous because gold coin packages are what drives revenue generation as opposed to losses from betting, thus operators are bold in their offers of bonus packages.