When you’re playing in sweepstakes mode - which we explain below - the sites offer the games using pre-existing laws designed for sweepstakes contests. Instead, they are simple, free-to-play games on the internet.

The games at social casinos do not fall into the category of regular, real money gambling, and therefore the sites don’t require a gambling license to operate. This is how the games operate at social and sweeps casinos. Sweepstakes are not legally considered a form of gambling, but rather simply a kind of promotional tool. However, California residents do have another option: they can play online at the many social casinos and sweepstakes casinos that are available to residents of the Golden State. The situation doesn’t look like it’s changing any time soon. There have been efforts made to introduce legal gambling in the state, notably two separate sports betting ballots in 2022, but both were voted down by a fairly significant margin at the polls.Ĭalifornia also has dozens of tribal casinos dotted around the stake, and any move to legislate for legal online gambling has been met with significant opposition from the tribes. We’re explaining exactly how social gambling works in California right here. In the case of sweepstakes games - they can also provide real cash prizes for players. SOCIAL CASINOS or sweepstakes are sites are totally free to join and play at, very widely available around the country, including California.