Baltimore Takes DraftKings and FanDuel to Court Over Alleged Predatory Tactics

City Fires Lawsuit

Represented by Mayor Brandon Scott, the City Council, City Solicitor Ebony Thompson, and the Baltimore City Department of Law, alongside the law firm DiCello Levitt LLP, the city’s accusing these betting giants of shady moves that break its Consumer Protection Ordinance (CPO).

Baltimore’s not holding back, claiming the companies’ practices are predatory and hit the community hard, putting profits over people.

The complaint alleges DraftKings and FanDuel roll out deceptive promotions, like so-called bonus bets, to reel in new users and spark compulsive gambling.

Then, they allegedly tap into massive user data, high-tech analytics, and tailored perks to spot folks with gambling issues and keep them betting.

Baltimore wants a jury trial, the max statutory penalties for each CPO violation, and a court order to stop these firms from targeting vulnerable players while forcing them to overhaul their platforms to ditch the exploitative edge.

Digging Into the Claims

Baltimore’s laying out a laundry list of gripes. First, those bonus bets and similar tricks aren’t what they seem, murky terms push users to bet fast and often, not fully grasping the catch. The city says these promos are built to hook people, not help them.

Next, the companies allegedly hoard data on users’ gambling habits and marketing weak spots, using it to zero in on problem gamblers for maximum cash grabs. VIP programs sweeten the deal with exclusive bonuses and personal handlers who nudge high rollers to keep playing, no income checks are required.

The lawsuit doesn’t stop there. It claims DraftKings and FanDuel skip solid responsible gaming measures, even though their tech could flag risky behavior.

Unlike in the UK, where Flutter rolls out financial vulnerability checks, cuts VIP perks, and caps young bettors, the U.S. gets none of that.

Baltimore also points to the firms tracking “chasing losses” patterns, when players try to win back what they’ve lost, then hitting them with prompts to jump back in. Notifications nag users to return, and bonus offers sound big but lock winnings into tiny, rapid-fire bets.

Community vs. Corporate

The city argues these tactics aren’t just slick business. They’re a direct attack on its most vulnerable residents. With Maryland’s sports betting market topping $475 million in February 2025, DraftKings and FanDuel dominate, raking in $346.2 million combined that month alone.

That’s big money, but Baltimore says it comes at a cost: addiction, financial ruin, and social fallout. The city’s CPO, beefed up in October 2023, gives it muscle to tackle unfair practices beyond old-school false ads, and now it’s flexing.

DraftKings and FanDuel have about 30 days to answer. Baltimore’s chasing penalties and reforms to shield its 570,000 residents. The lawsuit leans on stats, like a University of Maryland study showing 20.8% of online bettors face disordered gambling, nearly double the 11.3% for in-person players. It’s a stark gap, and Baltimore blames the apps’ design.