Dana White, the president of UFC, wrote a letter to President Donald Trump to ask him to entreat Congress to provide a reversal to the provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) that puts a 90% restriction on loss deductions for gambling.
“The current law makes it irrational to bet in the United States because you could end up owing taxes even when you lose or having a tax bill that exceeds your winnings for the year,” wrote White, with the letter being dated May 11 and noting that the two had talked about the issue before.
“The UFC supports a healthy, legal sports betting market to drive fan engagement, broadcast value, and sponsorships. When legal betting is discouraged, it hurts the ecosystem we’ve spent years building in partnership with state regulators and licensed operators.” (RELATED: Matthew, Brady Tkachuk Reveal Epic Story Of Team USA Hockey Sneaking Beer Into Olympic Village)
It was confirmed to ESPN by UFC that the letter is authentic. It was originally reported on by gambling journalist Dustin Gouker.
In July, after the bill was put into law, a lot of people in the legal gambling community brought up concerns regarding the possibility of damaging impacts from the legislation. Specifically, they spoke about how professional and high stakes bettors would be impacted.
New: UFC President Dana White has sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to help reverse the 90 percent limit on gambling loss deductions for US taxpayers that became law last year.
The issue has been a concern for both bettors and the gambling industry itself. pic.twitter.com/WH9ukZi3mH
— Dustin Gouker (@DustinGouker) May 13, 2026
An example would be a gambler winning $100,000 from betting, going on to lose that money, but they would only be able to deduct just $90,000 on their taxes. As a result, they would be forced to pay $10,000 despite not making any profit.
Since that time, lawmakers in each party and advocates in the industry have worked to get the provision reversed. Representing the 1st District of Nevada, including a portion of Las Vegas, U.S. Rep. Dina Titus introduced the Fair Accounting for Income Realized from Betting Earnings Taxation Act not long following OBBBA passing, however, it hasn’t gotten through Congress to be voted on.
“Restoring the 100 percent gambling loss deduction remains a top priority for the AGA, and we continue to actively engage with Congress and the administration to support a legislative solution,” said American Gaming Association senior vice president of government relations Chris Cylke in an official statement sent to ESPN.
“We appreciate Dana White helping raise awareness about the negative impacts this issue has not only on bettors, but also on businesses and jobs connected to the legal gaming ecosystem.”