A new survey finds that more than half of Gen Z investors redirected money intended for investing or retirement savings into sports betting over the past year, with a notable share treating it as part of their long-term financial plans.
According to Betterment’s 2026 Retail Investor Survey, released this week, 52% of Gen Z respondents said they diverted funds originally earmarked for investing toward sports betting in the past year. Twenty-six percent described sports betting as a deliberate component of their long-term financial strategy. The online survey of 1,000 U.S. retail investors across four generations was conducted between March 27 and April 3.
The percentages drop sharply with age. Among millennials, 31% reported redirecting money to sports betting and 14% viewed it as part of a long-term strategy. Those figures fell to 10% and 6% for Gen X, and 4% and 1% for baby boomers. Overall, only about 30% of Gen Z said sports betting was not part of their activity at all, compared with 63% across the full sample.
“When a prediction market or sportsbook starts to feel like a retirement strategy, we have a problem,” Betterment CEO Sarah Levy said in a statement. “These products are designed to keep people seeking the next quick score, not to help them build toward the next decade.”
Legal sports betting has expanded rapidly and is now available in 39 states. Betterment, a digital wealth platform, noted that the trend coincides with younger investors increasingly turning to social media for financial information and experimenting with higher-risk approaches.
A separate Northwestern Mutual survey earlier this year found elevated interest among Gen Z in prediction markets and sports betting, particularly among those who feel financially behind. Financial advisers have expressed concern that short-term speculative activity could undermine long-term wealth building for younger generations.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Tell your Smart Speaker to "PLAY 1080 KRLD"
Sign Up to receive our KRLD Insider Newsletter for more news
Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
