Telegram Gambling Ads in the USA 2026: State-by-State Law, Sweepstakes Bans and What We Measure
The United States has no federal gambling licence: legality is decided state by state. In Murphy v. NCAA (2018) the Supreme Court held that each state is free to act on sports betting, and federal law defines unlawful internet gambling by the law of the state where the bet is made. Sweepstakes casinos are banned by statute in states such as California (AB 831) and New York (S5935A). Telegram's guideline §5.6 prohibits gambling ads outright. Adsly opens gambling accounts in two formats — an official gambling account, ad budget from €25,000, and a test launch on our infrastructure, from €5,000 — and neither changes state law. US campaigns on our TON accounts ran at 0.39 TON per thousand impressions (all niches, 22 August–3 October 2026). The licence and state law remain the advertiser's responsibility.
Earlier versions of this page pitched Telegram as the place where US sweepstakes budgets go after the state bans. This version does something more useful: it sets out who decides what is legal in the United States, what the sweepstakes statutes actually say, what Telegram’s own rules say, and what US traffic costs in our accounts. Status as of 3 October 2026; it is not legal advice.
Is there a US gambling licence?
Not a federal one. Legality is decided state by state, and three sources show how.
The Supreme Court. In Murphy v. NCAA, decided on 14 May 2018, the Court struck down the federal law that had barred states from authorising sports betting. Its closing words set the framework that still applies: “Congress can regulate sports gambling directly, but if it elects not to do so, each State is free to act on its own.”
Federal statute. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act defines “unlawful Internet gambling” as placing, receiving or transmitting a bet over the internet “where such bet or wager is unlawful under any applicable Federal or State law in the State or Tribal lands in which the bet or wager is initiated, received, or otherwise made” (31 U.S.C. § 5362). In other words, the federal definition points back to the law of the state where the player sits.
How other ad platforms read it. Google’s gambling policy for the United States requires that advertisers of sports betting and online casinos “be licensed by the state entity in certain states where legal” and that they do not target users outside the states where they are licensed.
So an operator does not hold “a US licence”. It holds a licence from a particular state, and that licence covers that state. Build acquisition around it and you are building around fifty separate legal questions, not one.
What happened to sweepstakes casinos?
Sweepstakes casinos ran on a dual-currency model — one currency for free play, another redeemable for prizes — and presented themselves as promotional sweepstakes rather than gambling. State legislatures have started to close that route by statute. Two laws we opened:
| State | Law | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| California | AB 831, approved by the Governor on 11 October 2025 (Chapter 623) | Makes it unlawful to operate, conduct or offer an online sweepstakes game, and to knowingly support its operation or promotion — payment processors, platform providers and media affiliates included; a misdemeanor with a fine of $1,000 to $25,000, up to one year in county jail, or both |
| New York | S5935A, signed on 5 December 2025 (Chapter 605) | Prohibits operating, conducting or promoting online sweepstakes games in the state; fines of $10,000 to $100,000 per violation |
Both statutes reach promotion, not only operation. Other states have acted as well, by statute or through their regulators and attorneys general; we have not verified each one, so we give no count. Check the law of every state you intend to reach.
What do Telegram’s rules say?
Telegram’s ad guidelines do not treat gambling as a restricted category with a licence upload. They prohibit it. §5.6 reads: “Ads must not promote online or offline gambling, gaming, or casino-based activities involving real money, prizes, or goods of any value.” Its examples name games of chance and casinos, sports betting, lotteries, bingo and fantasy sports, as well as tips, odds and forecasts (wording checked on 3 October 2026). There is no licensed-operator exception and no country where the clause switches off.
Mini Apps are not a way around this. On PropellerAds’ Mini App ad network — a third-party network, not Telegram Ads — iGaming took the largest share of impressions in 2025, 22.37%; the same report notes that in 2025 Telegram began removing iGaming-related Mini Apps (PropellerAds, 2025).
Which gambling formats do we open?
What follows describes what we open, not a clause in Telegram’s policy.
| Test launch on our infrastructure | Official gambling account | |
|---|---|---|
| Ad budget from | €5,000 | €25,000 |
| Ad texts | Ours: soft wording, no brand or bonus figures | Yours: the creatives pass Telegram moderation and run as written |
| Who launches | Our manager, until the campaigns are Active | Our manager places the campaigns and looks after the first days |
| Your access | Pro Panel only | ads.telegram.org and the Pro Panel |
| Account opens in | 2 business days | 2 business days |
The commission is added on top of the ad budget; the order form shows your exact price before you pay, in any cryptocurrency and with no KYC. Once the account is open, the team agrees the launch plan with you, and each ad goes through moderation separately. Details are in the gambling policy guide and on the official gambling account page.
Targeting is by country. The ad form also has a Locations field that searches locations inside the selected country; which locations it offers for the United States is visible in the account, and we have not measured state-level campaigns. Do not plan on excluding individual states until you have seen that field for your own account.
What does the United States look like in our own accounts?
Our US prices come from TON accounts only — single-country campaigns, all niches, not gambling:
| Account type | CPM | CTR | Cost per click | Impressions | Accounts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TON (prices in TON, 22 Aug–3 Oct 2026) | 0.39 TON | 1.97% | 0.020 TON | 14.8M | 12 |
TON prices stay in TON and are not converted to euros. We have no Euro-account measurement for the United States, and we publish no gambling-only figure for it.
For the gambling vertical across all countries (campaigns whose title contains casino, bet, slot, gambl or poker, 3 October 2026): on TON accounts, 4,606 campaigns with spend on 68 accounts cost 10,213 TON for 11.8M impressions, or 0.86 TON per thousand. Leaving out campaigns with a click-through rate above 25%, that is 403,915 clicks at 0.024 TON and 51,900 users delivered into the product (channel joins, bot starts, app launches) at 0.19 TON. On Euro accounts the base is €412 of spend on 174k impressions — too thin to price from. 8.2% of gambling campaigns were declined (727 of 8,840), against 4.9% for every other niche.
A user in the product is a channel join or a bot start, not a depositor. Other markets are in Telegram Ads CPM by country, and the US market as a whole in the Telegram Ads in the USA guide.
Who is responsible for what?
- The licence. We do not verify licences and do not ask for one to open an account. Holding the state licence your offer requires is your responsibility.
- State law. Whether you may accept a player in a given state is decided by that state. A price and a moderation pass say nothing about it.
- Each ad. Opening an account does not approve any ad, and an approved ad is not legal clearance.
We are a Telegram Ads partner, not US gambling counsel. Take advice from a lawyer admitted in the states you intend to serve before you plan a budget.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a federal gambling licence in the United States?
No. In Murphy v. NCAA (2018) the Supreme Court said that, unless Congress regulates sports gambling directly, each state is free to act on its own, and federal law defines unlawful internet gambling by the law of the state where the bet is made. Operators are licensed state by state.
Are sweepstakes casinos legal in the United States?
It depends on the state, and the list of states that ban them is growing. California’s AB 831 (approved 11 October 2025) and New York’s S5935A (signed 5 December 2025) prohibit online sweepstakes games, and both reach promotion as well as operation. Check every state you intend to reach.
Does Telegram allow gambling ads?
No. §5.6 of Telegram’s ad guidelines prohibits ads that promote gambling, and its examples include sports betting, lotteries, bingo and fantasy sports. What we describe on this page is the two account formats we open, not an exception in Telegram’s policy.
What does US traffic cost on Telegram?
On our TON accounts, single-country US campaigns in all niches ran at 0.39 TON per thousand impressions, a 1.97% CTR and 0.020 TON per click (14.8M impressions, 12 accounts, 22 August–3 October 2026). We have no Euro-account measurement for the US and publish no gambling-only US figure.
Can I target or exclude individual US states?
Targeting is by country. The ad form has a Locations field that searches locations inside the selected country; which locations it offers for the United States is visible in the account, and we have not measured state-level campaigns.
How long does a gambling account take to open?
2 business days from payment, in either format. After that the team agrees the launch plan with you; moderation of each ad is a separate step.
Do you help with US licensing?
No. We open and service Telegram Ads accounts. We do not verify licences, and the licence and compliance with state law are the advertiser’s responsibility.
Questions about a gambling account for the markets your licence covers go to @adsly_pro.
