Unregulated gambling on social media platforms exacerbates risk of problem gambling in a large national sample

The burgeoning online gambling industry has begun to use social media platforms as a new way to capture the interest of clientele. Betting directly on social media platforms is an illegal act in almost all of the United States; however, no studies have assessed how the frequency of engaging in this illegal form of gambling may be predictive of problematic gambling. The objective of this survey study was to determine the prevalence of gambling on social media and its relationship to problem gambling. A representative online national sample of 17,767 U.S. adults was collected in February 2025. Of these, 12,845 (72%) reported some lifetime gambling, and they were surveyed on a variety of gambling behaviors, including their direct participation in betting on social media websites. The survey also included an assessment of problem gambling using the Short-form South Oaks Gambling Scale. Nearly 24% of lifetime gamblers reported using social media platforms to place wagers, with 14% reporting having done so in the past year. Past-year direct gambling on social media was associated with greater relative odds of problematic gambling (aOR=2.3, CI:2.0- 2.7, p<.001) when sociodemographic variables were statistically considered. There were some distinctions between various social media platforms relating to the risk of problematic gambling, with TikTok showing the greatest relative risk (aOR=2.9, CI:2.2, 3.8, p<.001). Direct gambling on social platforms is common among those who gamble and is strongly associated with the increased odds of pathological gambling. More detailed information on the risks associated with each of the various social media platforms may be helpful for policy makers and regulators as they endeavor to limit the destructive consequences of online gambling.