YouTube crackdown, Trump's "big, beautiful bill" threaten future of gambling

Call it the war on poker — professional players and amateurs alike are coming under siege from Uncle Sam, YouTube and state regulators.Why it matters: Poker players say policies and crackdowns aimed at gambling are threatening livelihoods, driving fans offline, and reshaping how millions of people watch and play.State of play: The war on poker is taking place on multiple fronts.A change in tax law stuffed into President Trump's "big beautiful bill" at the last minute could put professional poker players out of work and saddle amateurs with hefty tax bills.Google's YouTube is cracking down on poker videos, shutting down some vloggers and limiting the audience of others.A growing number of states are taking steps to ban websites that allow users to play poker for sweepstakes coins that can be converted into real money.Zoom out: Poker players, meanwhile, have long argued their game involves substantial skill — so it shouldn't be treated the same as ones where the house always wins in the long run, like blackjack, roulette or slots.Threat level: YouTube recently terminated one of professional poker player Brad Owen's popular poker channels on YouTube, telling him he was "prohibited from using, possessing, or creating any other YouTube channels" without specifying what policies he had violated.His channel was later reinstated after he filed an appeal and after Axios asked YouTube about it, but he's one of multiple popular players, including Ryan Depaulo, whose channels have come under scrutiny this year."We reviewed the channels flagged and corrected a small handful of decisions, but otherwise our policies were applied correctly," a YouTube spokesperson told Axios."Part of me wouldn't have minded a little break from making content," Owen told Axios in an email, "but I also have a family of five to provide for, and it would've left me scrambling to figure out what my next career move would've been."YouTube in March "strengthened" its policy against "directing viewers to online gambling sites or applications that are not certified by Google," the spokesperson said.The policy also does not allow users to depict or promote in-person gambling without age-restricting the content.Daniel Negreanu, a poker vlogger who is also considered one of the best players in the world, said on X that the policy translates into "a clear objective to destroy poker content."Owen and Negreanu say the YouTube policy changes have led to plunging viewership of their videos.Follow the money: On the taxes front, gamblers of all stripes — even losing ones — may have to fold if the new tax law stays in place.Beginning in the 2026 tax year, they must report 100% of their winnings but can only write off 90% of their losses. Previously they could write off all of their losses.In other words, a player who wins $1 million and loses $1 million in the same year would still have to pay taxes on $100,000 in income."There's no other business I'm aware of that would still have to pay taxes if its revenue didn't exceed its expenses," Owen said. A push to overturn the tax change is being championed by Nevada Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada) and has drawn bipartisan support from the likes of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.). But it hasn't gone anywhere yet."The goal right now is to restore the deduction to 100%," American Gaming Association spokesperson Joe Maloney tells Axios. "The strategy is to continue to build allies and a coalition in the House and Senate to get it done."The intrigue: At a time when sports betting is everywhere, the president of the United States is a former casino owner and his son is investing in prediction markets, gamblers say the crackdown is incongruous with the cultural and political moment.They say the crackdown will encourage gamblers who previously reported their winnings honestly to lie on their taxes or to use unregulated sites to avoid being seen."You're paying taxes on money you never actually won," gambling industry analyst Dustin Gouker of The Closing Line tells Axios. "It's phantom winnings."The other side: Supporters of the tax change — which multiple members of Congress have said they didn't realize they were voting for — include former Vice President Mike Pence's conservative group Advancing American Freedom Foundation.Pence's organization said "these deductions distort the tax code, reward unproductive behavior, and funnel billions into government coffers at the expense of working families."What we're watching: Whether Las Vegas, which is already in a travel rut, takes a further hit in 2026 as people shy away from gambling for fear of taking a tax hit."The tax change would disincentivize a large number of people from even stepping foot in a casino," Owen told Axios. "I understand that many might view that as a good thing, but Las Vegas as a whole could suffer substantially more than it has with tourism already being down."The bottom line: Gamblers are stuck with a bad hand.

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