Posted on: January 28, 2026, 04:28h.
Last updated on: January 28, 2026, 04:58h.
- Tennessee sportsbook shut after scrutiny over payday lending and gambling overlap
- Probe details lawmaker intervention after regulators suspended betting license
- Payday lender ties raised consumer protection and ethics concerns
The bets are off at Tennessee’s controversial online sportsbook, Action 247, which closed down last week, citing its inability to compete with major players like DraftKings and FanDuel. That’s despite allegations that it benefited from political intervention by Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-25th Dist.), according to an investigation by ProPublica.
Action 247 was controversial because it shared common ownership with payday lending company Advance Financial. Both businesses were controlled by Michael and Tina Hodges, making Action 247 the only online sportsbook in the United States owned by individuals who also operated a payday loan company.
Suspended License
Nashville-based Advance Financial is a high-interest payday lender offering loans of up to $4,000 at a 279.5% APR. The company, founded by the Hodges, is aggressive. It has filed more than 110,000 lawsuits against borrowers in Tennessee.
In 2021, Action 247 had the dubious honor of becoming the first sportsbook in the US to have its license suspended after regulators discovered that it was integrated with Advance Financial’s storefronts.
That meant customers could walk into an Advance Financial location, borrow money, and immediately deposit that cash into an Action 247 betting account at the same counter.
The lottery board voted to suspend Action 247’s license in March 2021. A judge later lifted the suspension so the company could continue operating while the investigation continued.
According to ProPublica, a month after the suspension, Sexton met with two members of the lottery board to express his dissatisfaction with the decision. Susan Lanigan, then chair of the lottery board, later said Sexton “made it clear he was not happy.”
Sexton subsequently sponsored and successfully passed legislation that removed the lottery board’s authority over sports betting regulation, replacing it with a new regulatory body more directly influenced by the legislature.
The Hodges have been among the most significant political donors to Sexton and his political action committee, contributing roughly $105K over the past decade, according to the investigation.
Once the lottery lost oversight of sports gambling, its active investigation into Action 247 was dropped. The sportsbook continued operating, but it never gained significant market share compared with larger operators.
‘Predatory’ Set-Up
Action 247 ultimately ceased operations on January 16, telling customers it was no longer accepting wagers and that their balances would be returned to them.
The unusual integration of high-interest lending and gambling has drawn criticism from consumer advocates, who called have called it predatory.
Former state Rep. Darren Jernigan, who attempted to pass legislation to ban such arrangements, argued that there was “no way to verify if someone was borrowing and betting the money away.”
Tennessee law still permits a payday lender to own a gambling business, a situation that’s unique among states that have legalized sports betting.
