“Defendants have full visibility into users’ concerning betting patterns and then push the users to gamble further through targeted advertising, personalized ‘bonus’ incentives, and ‘push’ notifications,” the lawsuit alleges.
Attorneys involved in a high-profile social media addiction trial against Meta and YouTube have filed a lawsuit against online sportsbooks DraftKings and FanDuel, claiming that the two companies used technology similar to that of social media platforms to keep users betting.
According to ESPN, the lawsuit was filed Wednesday as a personal injury complaint in Massachusetts state court. Attorneys claim that DraftKings and FanDuel track users’ behavior, then use the collected findings to encourage betting “precisely when [users are] most susceptible, like late at night or after a big loss.”
“Defendants have full visibility into users’ concerning betting patterns and then push the users to gamble further through targeted advertising, personalized ‘bonus’ incentives, and ‘push’ notifications,” the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit is the second this week filed against DraftKings and FanDuel.
As LegalReader.com reported on Tuesday, the other lawsuit, filed in a Pennsylvania state court, accused both FanDuel and DraftKings—along with the NFL and its data partner, Genius Sports—of creating a “known addictive product.”
The Massachusetts lawsuit, in contrast, takes specific issue with the companies’ algorithms, comparing them unfavorably with those used by social media platforms and video game developers. Jennifer Hoekstra, an attorney and partner with Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz, told ESPN that sportsbooks have the power to put safeguards in place but often opt to make apps “designed” to make the experience “more addictive.”
“They develop and personalize themselves to the individual user,” Hoekstra told ESPN. “When you log in, the algorithm knows who you are and what you’re interested in. It pops up, so it becomes more addictive for that person.”
The plaintiff in the Massachusetts lawsuit says that he downloaded the DraftKings and FanDuel applications in 2023, shortly after state law began permitting the use of online gambling. At the time, the plaintiff made small, recreational bets while watching sprots games.
However, his gambling pattern eventually escalated and turned into “an unmanageable addiction to the defendants’ sports betting platforms.”
As in the Pennsylvania case, the Massachusetts plaintiff said that he was assigned VIP hosts, who offered incentives to continue gambling like bonuses and free tickets to sporting events. Attorneys say these were inducements to keep gambling even after suffering serious financial losses.
During his first year, the plaintiff wagered nearly $200,000—twice his annual pre-tax income.
In 2024, his play on FanDuel increased to $1.3 million, “reflecting his disordered use of the platform.” The following year, his wagers topped $1.5 million and he lost his job. Attorneys report that their client is now in counseling for gambling addiction.
Hoekstra emphasized that this lawsuit asserts that products like FanDuel and DraftKings can present a real physical danger for users beyond the ever-present risk of financial harm.
“We’re claiming that there is an actual physical harm that is being done through the addiction,” Hoekstra said. “And that is the difference with ours, that there is a defective product that was defectively, intentionally designed to cause this harm.”
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