Survey Finds 52% of Gen Z Investors Shifted Investing Money to Sports Bets

More than half of Gen Z respondents in a U.S. investor poll said they redirected money intended for investing to sports bets, while 26% described betting as part of their long-term financial strategy.

An online poll of 1,000 U.S. retail investors ran from March 27 to April 3, 2026. Gen Z, millennials, Gen X and baby boomers each made up one-quarter of participants. Respondents had to hold at least one qualifying investment; people whose only investment was a 401(k) were excluded.

That screening means the results describe existing investors who took the poll, not all Gen Z adults. The 52% figure captures whether respondents redirected money at least once, but does not give a dollar total. The poll also does not show whether those bets won or lost. The 26% response reflects how participants viewed sports betting in their financial plans; it does not establish that betting generated investment returns.

Across the broader U.S. market, state-regulated sports betting generated $16.96 billion in gross gaming revenue in 2025 on $166.94 billion in wagers. Revenue rose 22.8% from 2024. U.S. sports-betting revenue was $430.7 million in 2018. These market totals show the scale of betting activity but do not identify how much was wagered by Gen Z or by people moving money intended for investing.

A separate analysis of credit records for roughly 7 million U.S. adults estimated average credit-score declines of 0.804 points with general legal sports betting access and 2.74 points with online access. It examined state legalization changes from 2018 through 2023. The population-level estimates do not track the poll’s participants or measure their individual financial outcomes.

Betterment CEO Sarah Levy said, “When a prediction market or sportsbook starts to feel like a retirement strategy, we have a problem.”