Everyone knows major names like Ryan Seacrest and Drake for their professional careers as TV stars and entertainers. But even celebrities with nine-figure net worths have a side hustle!
That’s right – ever since social and sweepstakes casinos began sweeping over the U.S. market in 2017 with the introduction of Chumba, they’ve created jobs, advertisements and commercials that border on the unexpected. Even real money casino sites like BetMGM have taken notice!
I’ve dug up all the celebrities that are working with sweeps and real money casinos to see if this phenomenon correlates with a rise in social gaming.
Ontario has outright banned the use of celebrities in gambling-related advertisements, but if you live in the United States or other parts of Canada, there’s a major chance you’ll recognize one of these familiar faces. First up, we’re evaluating Ryan Seacrest’s brand partnership with Chumba.
1. Ryan Seacrest (Chumba Casino)
You know him from American Idol, and if you’re one of his super-fans, you also know he speaks at least seven languages. While he’s currently busy hosting Wheel of Fortune, flexing new gains and rubbing elbows with the Kardashians, he worked hard to promote Chumba for nine months.
His deal with Chumba kicked off in December of 2023, but their proposed 12-month partnership ended in late September of 2024.
Rather than lending only his face and likeness to Chumba, Ryan went all-in with first-person videos of himself truly enjoying the games. And with a 450-million-dollar smile like Ryan’s, his fans couldn’t help but wonder just how much fun he was having!
He ended his ultra-successful marketing campaign with Chumba in true Seacrest style. One of his last Facebook posts delivered first-person analysis from the man himself:
“Chumba Casino has taken fun to new heights, and I happily rate it at a celestial 15/10.”
That’s a glowing endorsement if we’ve ever seen one.
2. Drake (Stake.com)
Aubrey Graham, the man behind Degrassi and five-time Grammy Award winner best known for his piping-hot discography, is an avid gambler behind the scenes. Drake needs no introduction as one of the industry’s most recognizable rappers, entertainers, and celebrity ambassadors.
Drake’s partnership with Stake.com came at the height of his powers in 2022, but it ended on bad terms just last year. Before we dive into how it all fell apart, let’s talk about Drake’s rise to prominence as a gambler.
By the time he decided to sign his historic $100 million annual deal with this real money casino and sportsbook, he was already the proud owner of NOCTA, a Nike-affiliated clothing line, and “Better World Fragrance,” his luxury candle company.
Ever since the beginning, Drake has showcased himself spending ridiculous amounts of money playing slots, table games and his favorite game of chance (roulette). He once won $17.9 million from a fateful $995,000 bet, and he followed that up with another $2.3 million win seconds later.
Rather than seeing this opportunity as just a massive paycheck, Drake took his innate love for sports and casino gambling and transformed it into a way to relate with his audience. Of course, when you have more than $250 million stashed away like the 6 God, you can afford to play big.
Thankfully, that never stopped Drake from reminding his fans to bet responsibly, even during his affiliated streams.
Fast-forwarding to the end of last year, Drake had a fall-out with Kick CEO Eddie Craven. Eddie had promised to sponsor his stream with Adin Ross, but he went back on his word (and money) at the last second. Stake had also promised to sponsor the stream, but they backed out as well.
This chain of events led Drake to stop their partnership after his final stream on Dec. 28, 2024.
Drake’s now-defunct Kick channel was briefly held under the screen name “guest0987654321” before his videos were wiped from the page entirely. He’s set up a new Kick page with his own name, and we look forward to following Drake’s gaming journey as an individual entrepreneur.
3. Paris Hilton (WOW Vegas)
Paris Hilton knows exactly how to pander to her audience, and her ability to adapt in the face of constantly changing headwinds fueled the birth of her decades-long career. Most reality TV star icons don’t have the stick-and-stay power that’s allowed Ms. Hilton to stay relevant for 20 years.
Gen X’ers might know her from The Simple Life, but our millennial readers will most likely know Paris as the celebrity activist who’s taken up a worthy cause in her middle age.
In 2021, she partnered with co-founder Bruce Gersh to launch 11:11 Media Impact, an advocacy group and media company that aims to protect vulnerable youth. Three years later in January of 2024, she partnered with WOW Vegas to represent the social casino as a celebrity ambassador.
Rather than playing games and showcasing herself on streams like her peers Drake and Ryan Seacrest, Paris’ involvement is limited to social media promotion and looking pretty for the cam.
She’s featured on WOW Vegas’ homepage and promotional banners dressed in full glam, where she stuns the audience as per usual. As she ambles through CGI candy-coated fields, she gives viewers a glowing review of WOW Vegas’ “totally fab design” and claims they’re “totally slaying.”
When the queen of marketing gives you that kind of testimonial, you take it and run. To this day, while Paris is no longer posting social media promotions on WOW Vegas’ behalf, we don’t think her likeness will get removed from their homepage anytime soon.
4. Jamie Foxx (BetMGM)
There aren’t many names bigger than Jamie Foxx – while he’s best-known for his primary acting roles in blockbuster films like Django Unchained (2012) and Spider Man: No Way Home (2021), he’s turned his attention from the box office and Billboard Top 100 to produce ads for BetMGM.
Unlike other celebrity brand ambassadors, Jamie Foxx’s background as an actor, author, R&B musician and sitcom host makes him the perfect candidate to host original, funny commercials. He’s been working with BetMGM since 2020, and his partnership with the site continues today.
He’s helped BetMGM stand out from the drab, boring regulatory field their competitors operate within, flashing those pearly-whites and making fans laugh while promoting BetMGM’s bonuses and stand-out features.
His “Second Chance” commercial sees the actor play different versions of himself, morphing from a cheerful brand ambassador to a concerned gambler, a percussionist, and a man who dreams of a “second chance” to land on the football field.
More recently, he showcased his piano skills in the midst of shattering glass and fiery baseballs just to announce that BetMGM offers live betting on all your favorite sports. Jamie Foxx always shows up and shows out, turning even the mundane into something that feels tangibly exciting.
5. John Goodman (Slotomania)
John Goodman might be a former brand ambassador for Slotomania, but it’s arguably far more impressive (and worthy of a SlotsFan shout-out) that he managed to lose 200 pounds over the past decade and some change!
As recently as 2023, the former Roseanne star credited “hitting the mitts,” a Mediterranean diet, and walking between 10k – 12k steps a day as the secret to his personal success. In the middle of committing to workouts six times a week, Goodman helped Slotomania point out new players.
Literally!
John plays the role of an animated, talking finger that finds himself in plenty of compromising situations. After spending his days getting squished into a screen, missing the toilet paper, and digging for snot rockets, he needs something to take his mind off the stress of everyday living.
Everything changes for John when the person attached to his finger-shaped personality decides to download Slotomania, a free-to-play social casino. From then on, his life is filled with heaps of excitement as the commercial’s faceless protagonist presses John’s face onto the “Spin” button.
As far as one-offs are concerned, this has to be one of the funniest videos we’ve ever watched. It feels like even more of a victory lap for the acclaimed actor considering his personal success.
Wrapping Up: Do We *Need* Celebrity Ambassadors?
While these are some notable examples of celebrities partnering with casinos, this doesn’t appear to be a wide spread trend. Especially considering the number of sweepstakes casinos that have come online and the number of established real money sites.
I appreciate celeb endorsements from time to time, the current wave of celebrities keen to hop on the gravy train feels somewhat ingenuine. For example, I can’t see Paris Hilton spinning through WOW Vegas’ top slots in her free time (mostly because she doesn’t have any to spare).
Personally, seeing a celebrity endorse a platform makes no difference as to whether or not I join the site. My decisions are formed on a casino’s reputation, games, bonuses, payment methods, and redemption options. In my opinion, celebs view gambling as just another business venture.
If you’re anything like me and you’d rather watch people enjoy the work they do, you’ll probably enjoy watching YouTube’s most popular slots streamers. Check out our database of more than 275 slots influencers to follow their channel (and personal) growth.
