A long-standing collectibles practice known as “breaking” is under legal scrutiny after two separate claims argued the activity amounts to unlawful gambling, according to ESPN. The suits target live shopping platforms that host box breaks and contend randomized breaks operate as unregulated games of chance.
This spring, attorney Paul Lesko filed an arbitration demand against Whatnot on behalf of nearly 70 customers, and a separate lawsuit filed in July 2025 accuses Whatnot and Fanatics Live of similar wrongdoing, ESPN reported. Lesko told ESPN “the process should begin by mid-July.” A spokesperson for Whatnot declined to comment on the arbitration demands. In a March statement after the filing, the company said it “absolutely reject[s] the characterization in this complaint,” adding that “Gambling isn’t allowed on Whatnot, and we strictly enforce this policy” and that card breaks are a long-standing collecting format. A Fanatics spokesperson declined to comment.
According to ESPN, breaking involves a breaker opening a sealed product—typically a box of sports cards—on a livestream after selling slots to buyers. Slots can allocate all cards tied to a specific team or player, or be randomized; the sealed product usually is not opened until every slot is sold. Breaks take place on platforms including Whatnot, Fanatics Live, eBay Live, YouTube, Twitch and TikTok, and the breaker mails allocated items to buyers after the pull.
The practice, common in card shops for decades, expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic alongside a surge in collectibles interest. ESPN noted that as boxes now can cost thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, breakers often charge more for slots. Slot buyers are not guaranteed items of equal or greater value and sometimes receive nothing tied to the team or player they purchased.
High-value “chase” cards—low-numbered inserts or parallels, short-printed case hits, autographed or patch-autographed cards and Logoman or Shield cards—drive most of the value in modern products, ESPN reported. More expensive releases generally contain fewer but rarer cards per box, reducing the odds that any given slot will yield a significant hit. ESPN interviewed legal experts, academics and hobby insiders to examine how gambling and lottery laws might apply and how the industry could change if the challenges succeed.
