The long-running case of PokerStars versus Kentucky is over. After the state battled with the online poker operator at various levels since 2008, the lawsuit seemed to be reaching a crescendo when PokerStars parent company Flutter Entertainment appealed the case to the Supreme Court of the United States. After more than a dozen years, Flutter was going to take it all the way to the highest court in America rather than pay the $1.3B award as ordered by the Kentucky Supreme Court.
Suddenly, something changed. Flutter and Kentucky reached a settlement. And it’s over.
Perhaps PokerStars wants to make nice with Kentucky in order to be considered for an igaming license when the state eventually legalizes the new industry. On the other hand, Flutter could have simply grown tired of the $1.3B tab hovering over its financials.
Either way, it’s done and dusted. Taking It to the Top
In 2008, then-Governor Steve Beshear led the way when the Commonwealth of Kentucky wanted to fight online poker and igaming. He feared that people playing online would take revenue away from the state’s horse racing industry. So, he took his over-the-top claims of online gaming sites being leeches and part of the underworld to a judge. And with the court’s permission, Beshear seized 141 online gambling domains, including PokerStars.
That battle moved forward, but Kentucky wasn’t happy that PokerStars fought back. The state sued PokerStars in 2011. And several years later, the Franklin County Circuit Court ruled for Kentucky to the tune of $870M, to recover rake PokerStars supposedly collected from the state’s residents between 2006 and 2011…plus damages. The Kentucky lawsuit against Amaya/PokerStars is a blatant, overstepping money grab and simply absurd by the Bluegrass State.
— Donnie Peters � (@Donnie_Peters) December 29, 2015 The Kentucky Court of Appeals overturned that ruling in 2018, but the Kentucky Supreme Court shot that down in 2020 , reinstating the original judgment. When that high court refused to hear an appeal from PokerStars in early 2021, the online poker operator – alongside parent company Flutter Entertainment – had to make a decision. When a Kentucky judge ruled […]
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