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Fortune
Fortune
Catherina Gioino

Gambling becomes America's favorite pastime as Americans spend more on sports bets than movies, arts, museums, and music combined

Fans Watch Super Bowl LX In California beneath tv screens with betting ads (Credit: Jill Connelly/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In 2025, Americans placed roughly $166 billion in bets on sporting events. That’s more than the entire U.S. movie, music, book, and museum industries generated in revenue combined.

The North American box office totaled $8.87 billion in 2025, which is still 22% below pre-pandemic levels. Recorded music revenue hit a record $11.5 billion. Live music like concerts and festivals brought in $18.51 billion. Meanwhile, book publishers tracked by the Association of American Publishers reported $14.6 billion for the year. And the U.S. museum industry generated an estimated $16.4 billion. Add it up and the total comes to roughly $70 billion, which is less than half what Americans wagered on sports.

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