SAFE Bet Act of 2025

This bill sets national rules for sports betting. It makes it illegal to accept sports bets unless a state chooses to opt in and gets federal approval; violations bring civil fines, not criminal charges. The U.S. Attorney General approves state programs for three years at a time and can revoke them if standards aren’t met. The rules begin 18 months after the bill becomes law .

It focuses on fair play and public health. It limits risky bet types and aggressive marketing, requires strong ID and data checks, and sets up national tools to help people avoid harm from gambling. States and Tribes can still add stricter rules, and online bets are treated as happening where the betting server sits, with special rules when that server is on Indian lands.

• Who is affected

  • People who bet on sports (must be 21+), sportsbooks, sports leagues, and state and Tribal regulators .

• What changes

  • No bets after a game starts, and no “prop” bets on amateur or college sports.
  • Ads must name the operator, include help resources, avoid targeting minors and people with gambling problems, and may air only after 10 pm local time.
  • Deposit and payment limits: no credit cards, no more than five deposits in 24 hours, and income checks before very large betting amounts.
  • Clear info up front: real odds and bonus terms must be shown, easy cancellations before placing a bet, and no unfair withdrawal hurdles or fees .
  • A national self-exclusion list lets people block themselves from all licensed sportsbooks in opt-in states; operators must honor it. States must also offer in‑state self‑exclusion options .
  • Who cannot bet: anyone under 21, people on the self-exclusion list, and insiders like athletes, coaches, officials, and certain team staff for their own sports.
  • Data and integrity rules: online betting must use location checks to stop out‑of‑state bets; leagues can ask states to limit certain bets to protect game integrity; results must use league‑licensed data through 2025, then state‑approved sources after that .
  • Operator duties: keep enough money on hand to cover customer funds and bets, run employee background checks, keep detailed records, share anonymized betting data quickly with regulators, and report suspicious activity to regulators, leagues, and federal law enforcement .
  • Limits on using AI to track individuals, target offers, or create new gambling products like microbets.
  • Public health steps: a yearly national survey on online sports betting, a Surgeon General report, and a possible CDC system to track gambling addiction trends .

• When

  • Main rules start 18 months after enactment; the Attorney General has 180 days to decide on a state’s application; approvals last three years and can be renewed .