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Celebrity gambling partnerships are everywhere. Jamie Foxx has fronted BetMGM commercials since 2020. Paris Hilton reps WOW Vegas. Drake put his name on Stake before that deal fell apart. But do these deals actually move players, or are operators just paying for a familiar face?
New survey data suggests the answer sits somewhere in the middle.
What the numbers say
A YouGov survey of US gamblers found 42% say seeing a celebrity in a gambling ad makes them view the brand more positively, including 14% who feel “very positively” about it. Among the general public, that number drops to just 12%.
The same survey found 42% of gamblers said they’d be more likely to consider betting with a brand that uses a celebrity, including 14% “very likely.” But nearly as many, 48%, said celebrity marketing wouldn’t sway them at all.
Trust is where the numbers get shakier. Just under half of gamblers, 46%, said celebrity endorsements make gambling brands feel less authentic. Only 23% disagreed. On raw trust, opinion splits close to even: 34% say celebrities make a brand feel more trustworthy, while 32% say the opposite.
The type of celebrity matters more than the fact that a celebrity showed up at all. Professional athletes and gambling professionals, like poker player Daniel Negreanu, topped the list as the most credible endorsers, each rated as suitable by 41% of gamblers. Actors came in at 38%, musicians and comedians at 34%. Reality TV personalities ranked last, seen as appropriate by just 28% of gamblers and as unsuitable by 40%.
None of this proves a direct increase in gambling activity tied to any single endorsement deal. The survey data shows an effect on brand perception and consideration, not on measured spend. Operators are paying for eyeballs and click-through, not a documented lift in handle.
The partnerships players actually see
BetMGM has built its ambassador roster around broad name recognition. Jamie Foxx has starred in BetMGM commercials since September 2020, most recently the 2025 “Vegas Lights” spot linking BetMGM’s online casino to MGM’s physical Las Vegas properties. The operator also signed Derek Jeter in 2025, pairing the deal with a Hall of Fame-themed slot game, and has previously worked with Wayne Gretzky, Barry Sanders, and Tim Howard.
WOW Vegas took a different route, leaning on lifestyle appeal instead of sports credibility. The sweepstakes casino signed Paris Hilton as brand ambassador in February 2024 and renewed the deal for two more years in April 2025. The partnership includes co-branded promotions like Prizes from Paris and a curated slot section on the WOW Vegas site. For an operator navigating state-by-state sweepstakes regulation, a multi-year celebrity commitment also signals stability to players watching the compliance landscape closely.
On the other side, Stake shows what can go wrong. The crypto casino signed Drake in 2022 in what was billed as the first major global-artist endorsement of an online casino. The partnership turned controversial fast: critics said Drake’s high-dollar livestreamed betting sessions normalized gambling for younger viewers. A Missouri class action later alleged some of those sessions used Stake-funded money presented as his own, calling the arrangement “quietly corrosive” and accusing the platform of exposing consumers to financial harm. Fellow Stake-linked streamer Adin Ross stepped away from gambling content entirely in 2025.
Regulators are starting to push back
The backlash isn’t just anecdotal. Ontario’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission banned professional athletes from all online casino advertising starting February 28, 2024, and tightened restrictions on any celebrity likely to appeal to minors.
The rule followed a year of complaints about the volume of betting ads during live sports, along with consultations with mental health groups, gambling researchers, and the public. Athletes can still appear in Ontario-facing ads, but only to promote responsible gambling.
No US state currently has an equivalent ban, but the underlying question is the same one regulators are asking: does a familiar face make betting feel more normal than it should, especially to younger viewers who may not separate the celebrity from the product.
The bottom line
Celebrity partnerships clearly work as an attention tool. Operators wouldn’t keep signing seven and eight-figure deals otherwise. But the data says attention isn’t the same as trust, and trust isn’t the same as loyalty. A recognizable face can get a player to click an ad. It’s the deposit bonus, game library, and payout speed that decide whether they stick around.
