Gambling Emerges As One Of America’s Largest Forms Of Entertainment
Gambling has become one of the largest forms of entertainment following sports betting's widespread legalization.
Spencer Lombardo · Jul 27, 2026 · 2 min read
Gambling has become one of the largest forms of entertainment following sports betting’s widespread legalization.
Americans placed around $166 billion in bets on sporting events in 2025 — more than U.S. movies, music, books, and museums spending combined, Fortune reported Sunday. However, the outlet noted that figure is likely higher as it does not factor in bets placed on the two largest prediction markets in the world — Polymarket and Kalshi.
The North American box office earned $8.87 billion in revenue last year, whereas recorded music earned $11.5 billion, live music earned $18.5 billion, book publishers earned $14.6 billion, and the U.S. museum industry earned $16.4 billion — totaling around $70 billion, according to Fortune.
Kalshi did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
“Polymarket aims to continue to give fans new ways to follow the action, engage with their favorite teams, and put their knowledge to the test throughout the sporting season,” a spokesperson for Polymarket told the DCNF.
The spokesperson noted that Polymarket’s resolutions on the global platform are handled through Universal Market Access — a decentralized oracle, whereas resolutions on its U.S. exchange follow the applicable procedures within the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Designated Contract Markets rulebook.
“Polymarket is neutral market infrastructure and has no economic stake in any market outcome,” the spokesperson said. “We do not take positions or make money based on results.”
The total trading volume on Polymarket and Kalshi rose from $5 billion in Sept. 2025 to $24 billion in April 2026, according to a study by the Pew Research Center published in May. Pew estimated that sports betting accounted for around 80% of that volume.
However, sports betting on those platforms may actually be closer to $50-100 billion, College of the Holy Cross economist Victor Matheson told Fortune.
This surge in popularity came after the U.S. Supreme Court shot down a federal ban on sports betting in 2018.
Credit card delinquencies among Zoomers and Millennials rose in states that legalized sports betting, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York revised in March. Additionally, around a quarter of sports bettors worry they can’t control their gambling, according to a 2025 survey by U.S. News and World Report.
On the other hand, Matheson told Fortune that over 90% of bets waged end in winning. “That overall doesn’t really seem to be a crisis,” he said.
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All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.