In 2018, the Federal Law that prohibited gambling on sporting events – called the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) – across the United States was overturned by the Supreme Court, thus allowing each state to decide whether or not to legalise sports betting individually.
The impact of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn PASPA has quickly changed the betting landscape across the country, with many states deciding to open up and accept the revenue to be made in taxes from sports betting.
Here, Gambling Insider looks at the legal states and what is and isn’t allowed on a state-by-state basis.
The state of play
| Currently Legal Total: | 34 |
|---|---|
| Retail & Online: | 23 |
| Retail Only: | 9 |
| Online Only: | 2 |
Regulation status in US sports betting states
| STATE | RETAIL | ONLINE | TRIBAL ONLY | ALL-TIME HANDLE | ALL-TIME REVENUE | Date Launched (Retail) | Date Launched (Online) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | YES | YES | NO | $7.8bn | $636.1m | September 2021 | September 2021 |
| Arkansas | YES | YES | NO | $330m | $34.9m | July 2021 | February 2022 |
| Colorado | YES | YES | NO | $10.7bn | $713.3m | May 2020 | May 2020 |
| Connecticut | YES | YES | NO | $2bn | $180.4m | October 2021 | October 2021 |
| Delaware | YES | NO | NO | $554m | $84.1m | June 2018 | NA |
| Illinois | YES | YES | NO | $9.75bn | $1.4bn | March 2020 | March 2020 |
| Indiana | YES | YES | NO | $11.2bn | $937.2m | September 2019 | September 2019 |
| Iowa | YES | YES | NO | $5.6bn | $368.7m | August 2019 | August 2019 |
| Kansas | YES | YES | NO | $1.1bn | $27m | September 2022 | September 2022 |
| Louisiana | YES | YES | NO | $2.6bn | $227.2m | January 2022 | January 2022 |
| Maryland | YES | YES | NO | $1.7bn | $252.2m | December 2021 | November 2022 |
| Massachusetts | YES | YES | NO | NA | NA | January 2023 | March 2023 |
| Michigan | YES | YES | NO | $9.4bn | $789.8m | January 2021 | January 2021 |
| Mississippi | YES | NO | NO | $2bn | $235.1m | August 2018 | NA |
| Montana | YES | NO | NO | $123m | $16.9m | March 2020 | NA |
| Nevada | YES | YES | NO | $30.4bn | $1.7bn | 1949 | 1949 |
| New Hampshire | YES | YES | NO | $1.9bn | $146.5m | January 2020 | January 2020 |
| New Jersey | YES | YES | NO | $34.8bn | $2.4bn | June 2018 | July 2018 |
| New Mexico | YES | NO | YES | NA | NA | October 2018 | NA |
| New York | YES | YES | NO | $18.4bn | $1.5bn | January 2022 | January 2022 |
| North Carolina | YES | NO | YES | NA | NA | March 2021 | NA |
| North Dakota | YES | NO | YES | NA | NA | December 2021 | NA |
| Ohio | YES | YES | NO | $1.1bn | $208.9m | January 2023 | January 2023 |
| Oregon | YES | YES | NO | $1.2bn | $114.7m | August 2019 | August 2019 |
| Pennsylvania | YES | YES | NO | $19.6bn | $1.5bn | November 2018 | May 2019 |
| Rhode Island | YES | YES | NO | $1.5bn | $136.7m | June 2018 | March 2019 |
| South Dakota | YES | NO | NO | $10.7m | $1.2m | September 2021 | NA |
| Tennessee | NO | YES | NO | $7.3bn | $687.7m | NA | November 2021 |
| Virginia | YES | YES | NO | $8.6bn | $803.7m | January 2021 | January 2021 |
| Washington | YES | NO | NO | NA | NA | September 2021 | NA |
| Washington DC | YES | YES | NO | $519.7m | $64.7m | May 2020 | May 2020 |
| West Virginia | YES | YES | NO | $1.8bn | $156.1m | August 2018 | December 2018 |
| Wisconsin | YES | NO | YES | NA | NA | November 2021 | NA |
| Wyoming | NO | YES | NO | $184.8m | $18.8m | NA | September 2021 |
Frequently asked questions
What was the most recent state to legalise?
Massachusetts has proven to be the most recent state to legalise sports betting after the state legislator and government came to an agreement to legalise the practice in August 2022.
Will ‘Tribal Only’ states ever go online?
The answer that the question is up to each tribe. Some may choose to use its power over sports betting in individual states to implement an online vertical; however, this has not yet happened in the US due to tribes liking to bring customers into the casinos physically.
So, while it could happen in the future, it isn’t likely at the moment.
