India’s Supreme Court Rejects Flutter’s Challenge to Gaming Ban

India’s Supreme Court rejected a review petition from Flutter Entertainment’s Junglee Games on October 27, 2026. This decision upholds state powers to prohibit real-money games of skill, following a nationwide ban implemented earlier in the year.

What Happened

India’s Supreme Court denied a petition by Junglee Games, a company 95% owned by Flutter Entertainment, seeking to overturn a previous judgment. The court’s decision on October 27, 2026, reinforces the authority of states like Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to ban online games played for money, even if they are skill-based, according to NEXT.io.

The review petition specifically challenged the May judgment in State of Tamil Nadu v. Junglee Games India. This earlier ruling affirmed that states possess the power to regulate or prohibit betting involving games of skill, thereby reversing prior High Court decisions that had favored gaming operators. Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan signed the judgment, stating that “betting on games of skill is posing a serious threat to the State and the well-being of the masses, such betting would not enjoy immunity merely because it is taking place on a game of skill,” as reported by The Economic Times.

Key Details

• Flutter Entertainment’s Junglee Games holds a 95% ownership stake, according to NEXT.io.
• The Supreme Court’s decision upheld the powers of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to prohibit online games played for money, including those classified as games of skill, as stated by The Economic Times.
• This ruling follows a nationwide ban on real-money online gambling, which came into effect on May 1, 2026, imposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in August 2025, according to NEXT.io.
• A separate constitutional challenge regarding India’s nationwide real-money gaming ban, specifically the validity of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025, remains pending before the Supreme Court under the lead case Head Digital Works v. Union of India, NEXT.io reported.
• Flutter paused Junglee’s operations in August 2025, subsequently laying off 350 employees and redeploying 600 others to its Hyderabad Global Capability Centre, while exploring a free-to-play business model, NEXT.io stated.

Why It Matters

This Supreme Court rejection represents a significant setback for the online gaming industry in India, effectively closing off another avenue for companies to challenge state-level gaming prohibitions. The decision reinforces the legal framework allowing state governments to regulate real-money games of skill, even as a broader constitutional challenge to the nationwide ban progresses. The Economic Times highlighted that the court’s stance prioritizes public welfare over potential immunity for skill-based betting.

The ruling follows the comprehensive national ban on real-money online gambling, which has already impacted the industry significantly. Flutter Entertainment, for example, invested over $200 million in Junglee Games before pausing operations and initiating layoffs. This sequence of events underscores the regulatory challenges faced by operators in the Indian market, as reported by NEXT.io.

What’s Next

A separate constitutional challenge to India’s nationwide real-money gaming ban is currently pending before the Supreme Court, with the lead case being Head Digital Works v. Union of India. This ongoing case addresses the constitutional validity of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025 and the division of lawmaking powers between the central government and Indian states, according to NEXT.io.