BetMGM launches new jackpots in Michigan, with plans to expand over the summer and fall
BetMGM has announced the launch of new jackpots in the US state of Michigan, as its Vice President of Gaming notes that “igaming continues to be the growth engine of our business.”
According to a Tuesday release, the company is not only launching the new jackpot product but plans to “expand SideBet Jackpots into additional markets throughout the summer and fall, subject to regulatory approvals.”
BetMGM VP of Gaming Oliver Bartlett noted that “SideBet Jackpots expands the ways players can engage with our casino offering while creating additional opportunities to win across a growing network of games. It’s another example of how we’re investing in product enhancements that help distinguish BetMGM Casino.”
The feature is now available in more than 200 casino games, “with additional titles regularly added.” The new offering allows players to opt in for a US$0.10 SideBet on qualifying wagers, with each bet providing a chance on one of four progressive jackpot tiers, with the Mega Jackpot currently standing at over US$618,000.
The group notes the feature is “integrated directly into the player experience through the BetMGM Jackpots Interface,” allowing for viewing of participating games, jackpot values and recent winners.
“Each side bet contributes to a shared progressive jackpot network, with prize pools increasing as players participate across eligible games. As side bet wagers accumulate, jackpot values grow until a win is triggered,” indicates BetMGM.
Jackpots begin at US$100, rising to US$6,000 for the Minor category, US$30,000 for the Major category and US$500,000 for the Mega category.
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The Backstory
Jackpots become a product race
BetMGM’s Michigan launch of SideBet Jackpots lands in a market where online casino operators are increasingly treating progressive jackpots as a core engagement tool rather than a promotional add-on. The structure is familiar: a small opt-in contribution attached to eligible casino wagers, pooled across a network of games and paid through tiered jackpots. The competitive purpose is clearer. Operators want features that can sit across large parts of a casino lobby, create repeat play and give players a visible reason to move among titles without leaving the brand’s ecosystem.
That has become especially important in mature U.S. iGaming states such as Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where growth depends less on first-time adoption and more on retaining players, improving wallet share and differentiating product catalogs that often rely on the same major studios. BetMGM’s rollout in Michigan, with plans to expand to other markets subject to approvals, follows a broader push by rivals, suppliers and lotteries to build shared jackpot networks that can scale liquidity and raise headline prize values.
FanDuel set an early benchmark
One of the clearest precedents came from FanDuel, which moved beyond a standard opt-in model by giving players the ability to increase their jackpot contribution. In June, FanDuel expanded its Casino Jackpots feature so players in Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania could opt in at 10 cents or raise the contribution to 20 cents for a higher chance at a jackpot on eligible games.
The FanDuel model demonstrated two ideas now shaping the category. First, jackpot products can be layered across a wide range of top-performing and exclusive games rather than confined to a single title. Second, giving players a choice over contribution levels adds a degree of control to an otherwise randomized proposition. FanDuel said its jackpot feature had produced more than 450,000 wins totaling more than $300 million since launch, suggesting the mechanic can generate frequent engagement at scale when attached to a major casino brand.
The company also tied that rollout to its February 2024 acquisition of BeyondPlay, a player engagement specialist. That deal underlined the strategic value operators now place on jackpot technology, personalization and shared prize mechanics. BetMGM’s SideBet Jackpots enters this same competitive lane, with a single 10-cent side bet attached to qualifying wagers and four progressive tiers. The mechanics differ, but the business rationale is similar: use a cross-casino jackpot layer to make the lobby feel more connected and to give regular play a larger upside.
Lottery networks widen the model
Progressive jackpot momentum has not been limited to commercial online casinos. State lotteries have also embraced pooled jackpots for eInstant games, expanding the concept into regulated lottery channels where prize visibility and frequency are central to player appeal. The Kentucky Lottery recently became the first North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries and World Lottery Association member to host Instant Win Gaming’s Must Go Jackpots, a progressive product with a 24-hour cycle and a visible countdown timer that guarantees a daily award.
That launch showed how jackpot suppliers are experimenting with urgency as well as prize size. In Kentucky’s adoption of IWG’s Must Go Jackpots, the timer resets after each award, creating a daily rhythm intended to keep players returning. For lottery operators, that format offers a different promise than traditional large jackpots: more frequent prize moments, more visible anticipation and a product that can refresh the eInstant portfolio without depending solely on massive headline sums.
IWG has also pushed multistate liquidity. Georgia launched Mega Money Jackpots, while Pennsylvania added Super Drop Jackpots, extending pooled eInstant prizes across multiple jurisdictions. In Georgia and Pennsylvania’s expansion of IWG jackpot games, the supplier said its games had delivered 24 jackpot prizes over 22 months, with $60 million in prize funds. That scale matters because jackpots become more compelling as more jurisdictions or games feed the pool.
Scale drives liquidity and visibility
The same logic applies to online casino operators. BetMGM said SideBet Jackpots is already available in more than 200 casino games, with more titles to be added. That breadth is central to the product’s economics. A progressive network grows as more qualifying side bets are placed, and a larger game footprint increases the number of player sessions that can contribute to the same prize pool. The result can be a more visible jackpot proposition without requiring every game to be designed around a proprietary progressive mechanic.
IWG’s lottery network expansion illustrates the value of that pooled approach. The supplier added Georgia and New Hampshire to its Super Spin Jackpots multistate network, joining North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. In IWG’s addition of Georgia and New Hampshire lotteries, the company emphasized that each new lottery expands the shared pool and can create more frequent jackpot opportunities. Its InstantJackpots technology also allows lotteries to launch progressive games through IWG’s remote game server without additional development from their iLottery platform provider.
For commercial operators, the comparable challenge is integration. A jackpot feature must be visible enough to influence player behavior but seamless enough not to disrupt the base game. BetMGM’s use of a dedicated jackpots interface reflects that requirement. Players can view participating games, jackpot values and recent winners inside the casino experience, making the jackpot layer part of navigation and discovery as much as wagering.
Content trends favor familiar formats
The jackpot push is also tied to a broader shift in online casino content: bringing land-based familiarity into digital channels. A recent industry discussion on bringing stepper slots online highlighted why traditional slot mechanics remain relevant. Executives from IGT, AGS and Light & Wonder said simple, recognizable games can translate well to mobile and online play when the core experience is preserved and the presentation is adapted for digital devices.
That theme matters for BetMGM because jackpots often work best when paired with games players already understand. Stepper-style content, classic slots and straightforward mechanics create room for an added jackpot layer without overwhelming the base game. Suppliers in the roundtable also noted that progressives are becoming more common in stepper formats, not because jackpots are mandatory, but because they add a reason for players to stay engaged in a crowded lobby.
The balance is delicate. Online casino players face an abundance of games, bonuses and features. A jackpot overlay can sharpen a product’s appeal, but only if it feels easy to understand and broadly available. BetMGM’s SideBet Jackpots appears designed around that principle: a fixed side-bet amount, four prize tiers and a large network of eligible games. The wager is small, but the accumulated network effect is the point.
Regulatory approvals shape the next phase
The stakes for BetMGM are both commercial and regulatory. Michigan is one of the largest U.S. online casino markets and a natural proving ground for new product features. But expansion into additional states will depend on approvals in each jurisdiction, where regulators review game mechanics, disclosures, contribution structures and jackpot funding rules. That creates a state-by-state path for rollout, even when the product strategy is national.
If approved in more markets, SideBet Jackpots could help BetMGM compete more directly with operators that have already invested in proprietary jackpot layers. It also fits the company’s broader message that iGaming is a growth engine, particularly as online casino revenue remains more durable than sports betting in states where both are legal. Jackpots do not solve the structural limits of the U.S. market, where only a handful of states allow full online casino gaming, but they can improve performance inside the states that do.
The recent moves by FanDuel, IWG-backed lotteries and now BetMGM point to the same conclusion: progressive jackpots are becoming infrastructure. They are no longer just a feature on a single game. They are networks, interfaces and retention systems designed to turn everyday play into a shared prize pool. For BetMGM, the Michigan launch is the first test of whether that infrastructure can deepen engagement across its casino lobby before the company seeks wider approval through the summer and fall.
