Digital Pack Rips Reach $2bn Run Rate as Sportsbooks Move In, BofA Estimates

Digital pack rips, the app-based sale of randomized trading card packs, have reached an annualized revenue run rate of about $2bn, according to a Bank of America (BofA) analyst report shared with Sportico on 11 November 2026.

The report, written by BofA analysts Julie Hoover and Shaun Kelley, puts a size on a product category that sportsbooks and daily fantasy operators are entering. The numbers are analyst estimates rather than audited company revenue.

What BofA estimates for digital pack rips

A "rip" is a purchase in which a buyer pays a fixed price for a pack that reveals one random card on screen. BofA's analysts say the average card is worth less than the pack price, and that app operators keep at least 6% of pack spend.

The user figures imply growth of roughly 34 times in about a year. The estimate leaves out live breaking, a related format in which buyers pay upfront for a share of the cards a streamer opens on camera. Sportico cites one example in which reserving every Dallas Mavericks card costs $300.

For scale, earlier Gamingo coverage of Nevada's gaming win passing $1 billion for 25 consecutive months shows how large regulated U.S. gambling revenue is. Rips sit outside that regulated structure.

Why the economics resemble a slot machine

Because each pack contains one random card that is worth less than the pack price on average, buyers lose value in expectation. BofA compares the structure to "a slot machine," according to Sportico.

Many apps let buyers sell the card straight back. Yardbarker describes a $25 pack that was sold back for $21.15, about 85% of the price. The physical card sits in the operator's inventory, which is central to the legal argument discussed below.

Yardbarker counts more than 50 apps offering pack rips, a crowded field for a product that barely registered a year ago.

Which operators are already in

BofA calls digital rips "the more compelling near-term opportunity" for online sports betting operators. Several companies are already active:

• Fanatics runs both digital rips and live breaking.
• Underdog and PrizePicks offer rips only. Sportico says they led a recent influx of gaming companies, alongside PSA.
• FanDuel has a deal with Arena Club, according to Casino.org, which also names Crypto.com as an entrant.
• DraftKings has no proprietary rips product, but its venture arm, Drive, has invested in Rips by Triumph, according to Sportico.

Gambling Insider reported in late August 2026 that Mizuho estimates Fanatics' collectibles business could reach $5bn in 2026, and that Underdog was preparing its own digital card product.

Regulatory status and the scrutiny BofA expects

Rips are currently treated as e-commerce rather than gambling, according to Sportico. That lets companies offer them nationwide and avoids vice taxes, meaning the levies states apply to gambling-type activity. BofA says legal experts see "solid regulatory footing" while cards stay backed by physical inventory.

The same report anticipates more legal scrutiny if growth continues. Casino.org quotes BofA citing the popularity of the cards with children as a driver of that risk. Ken Goldin of Goldin Auctions has argued that rips could fuel addiction among young buyers, according to Sportico.

Courts have started to look at adjacent formats. Gambling Insider reported on about 29 August 2026 that claims involving Whatnot and Fanatics Live are testing whether randomized card formats amount to illegal gambling or lotteries. Sportico reported in early November that no state has challenged rips as gambling, in contrast to prediction markets, which are event-contract venues. Earlier Gamingo coverage of Polymarket blocking French users amid an ANJ investigation shows how quickly regulators can move on products that sit between trading and betting.

What operators and affiliates should watch

Three questions will shape the category over the next year:

1. Classification. Whether any state or court treats randomized packs as lotteries or gambling would remove the vice-tax advantage.
2. Youth exposure. Marketing that reaches young audiences could draw the type of pressure described in earlier coverage of the BGC's call for stricter social media controls on gambling advertisements.
3. Harm funding. If rips are pulled into the gambling-harm debate, operators may face questions on safer-play measures. Gamingo has tracked how GambleAware donations rose 34% in 2022-23 as harm-prevention funding became a bigger issue elsewhere.

For sportsbooks, the BofA numbers show how much demand exists before regulation reaches the format. For compliance teams, the same numbers show why the format may attract attention sooner.

Status reviewed on 13 November 2026. The $2bn run rate and user figures are Bank of America analyst estimates, as reported by Sportico and Casino.org. More business news and North America coverage.