Michigan regulator sends cease-and-desist letters to 33 offshore operators

The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) sent 33 offshore operators cease-and-desist letters on April 7, 2026. According to Legal Sports Report, the board accused the recipients of illegally offering Michigan residents online casino games, sweepstakes-style games and sports betting.

Operators and affiliates with any Michigan-facing activity are likely to need to confirm that every brand and partner involved holds an MGCB licence.

What happened

According to Legal Sports Report, the MGCB sent the letters.

MGCB Executive Director Henry Williams said people who choose to self-exclude through the state programme show courage. He added: "Offshore sites don’t respect it." Williams also said the letters are intended as a warning, adding that "our residents are not an untapped market."

The recipients named in the report include:

• Lucky Charm Sweep.
• Regal Casino and Sportsbook, also known as Wager Street.
• Basepoker.
• Exclusive Casino.
• Genie Jackpot.

The full list of 33 also includes Runewager, Stardust, Raging Bull Slots and Guangzhou Snail Interactive Technology Co., Ltd.

Earlier action

The letters follow a previous round. In a release dated 7 April, the MGCB said that over the preceding four months it had sent 45 offshore operators cease-and-desist orders. Regal Casino and Sportsbook and The Online Casino appear in both the April list and the latest list.

In that release, the MGCB said that anyone providing online casino gaming or sports wagering to people in Michigan must hold a board licence under related statutes, including the Lawful Internet Gaming Act and the Lawful Sports Betting Act. It added that operators ignoring a cease-and-desist directive could see the matter escalate to further civil and criminal enforcement. Williams described the work in April as an ongoing effort.

Prediction markets

Legal Sports Report also noted that Michigan has targeted unlicensed operators beyond offshore casino and betting sites. It said the MGCB and the attorney general's office have been leading action against prediction markets offering sports event contracts. The MGCB's news page lists agreements under which Coinbase and Robinhood agreed to halt sports-related event contracts in Michigan, the latter amid ongoing litigation.

Why it matters

Operators and affiliates should check whether any brand, white label or partner site that accepts Michigan traffic is licensed by the MGCB, and remove unlicensed brands from Michigan-facing promotion. The board has now sent two rounds of letters, and the MGCB says non-compliance can lead to civil and criminal measures, so Michigan exposure on unlicensed brands could carry growing risk.

The overlap between the two lists is also relevant. Two brands named in April were named again in the latest round, which could suggest a first letter does not necessarily end a brand's activity in the state. Compliance teams could treat the lists as a reference for screening affiliate programmes and traffic sources.

The messaging centres on self-exclusion. Williams said offshore sites will take a deposit from someone who has asked for help, and that the MGCB has no way to help that person get it back. Licensed operators in Michigan are required to uphold self-exclusion, so any gap between licensed and unlicensed handling is likely to remain a theme in the board's enforcement communications.

The prediction market actions sit alongside the offshore letters. Companies offering event contracts tied to sports could face similar scrutiny in Michigan, and operators in that segment may need to track the state's litigation and agreements.