Gambling takes money without creating value
“When you gamble, you are not buying anything, you are not selling anything, you are not creating a product.”
Gambling remains haram regardless of the label or platform because it transfers money through uncertain, nonproductive wagers rather than legitimate exchange.
The khutbah in 6 steps
- Defines modern betting apps, prediction markets, and renamed gambling products as gambling.
- Explains the Quranic reasons for prohibition, including harm, enmity, and distraction from prayer.
- Distinguishes gambling from trade, employment, ownership, and legitimate risk-bearing.
- Addresses common defenses involving skill, legality, charity, matched betting, and sports prizes.
- Offers a three-question test for identifying gambling.
- Calls for repentance and giving away gambling profits beyond one's original stake.
In the khateeb's words
“When you gamble, you are not buying anything, you are not selling anything, you are not creating a product, you are not contributing anything productive.”
“The idea that you're somehow going to be the outlier is a very, very slim chance”
“If you put in $100 and you won $120, take your original $100 back and take that $20 and give it away in charity.”
For the dinner table
The khateeb explains that gambling does not become permissible just because an app calls it a prediction market, a contract, or a game of skill. Gambling takes money from a loser and gives it to a winner without creating a product or providing a real exchange. It can harm people, create conflict, distract us from prayer, and turn our attention away from Allah. A simple test is to ask whether both sides put in money, the outcome is uncertain, and the winner takes what the loser paid. Anyone involved should repent, keep only the original money they contributed, and give away extra winnings to those in need.
- What makes a wager different from buying something or earning money through work?
- Why might companies give gambling a new name?
- What could someone do if they realize they have earned money through gambling?
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