Where Could We See Sports Betting Legalized Soon?

By Amelia Walker Senior Content Writer Updated: 14 July 2023

Amelia Walker Senior Content Writer

Amelia Walker is a Senior Content Writer at Betting.US. She has a law degree and deep knowledge of the gambling laws in the United States. Her mission is to keep players informed about responsible gambling, while her passion for sports helps her create useful guides. Amelia has over a decade of experience in betting, which has positioned her as a trusted voice among our readers.

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Sports Betting Legalized Soon

• Sports Betting Legalization: Steps in the Right Direction
• Legalization of Sports Betting: Hurdles the Industry Faces
• Georgia’s Path to Legalizing Sports Betting
• Minnesota’s Slow but Steady Progress Progress
• Missouri’s Journey to Sports Betting Approval
• Vermont: Waiting for the Governor
• North Carolina – A Surprising Turn of Events?
• Frequently Asked Questions

Is sports betting legalized in your state? If not, there’s a pretty good chance it may be soon, as more states than ever before are looking to begin allowing regulated sports betting. In this blog, we’ll explore the steps required for legalization, why the process can take so long, and reveal our estimated sports betting legalization map of 2023.

Sports Betting Legalization: Steps in the Right Direction?

The journey towards sports betting legalization is a complex process. It usually begins with the introduction of a bill in the state legislature, which outlines the proposed regulations, tax rates, and licensing requirements.

From there, both the state House and Senate must approve the bill, potentially with amendments. If differences exist between the versions passed by each chamber, a conference committee must reconcile them. Then it must be signed by the governor.

Legalization of Sports Betting: Hurdles the Industry Faces

As states move forward with sports betting legalization, they often encounter various challenges and obstacles. Some of the most common include opposition from anti-gambling groups, government officials voicing their concerns about problem gambling, and disagreements on tax rates and revenue allocation. These issues often slow down or even halt the legalization process, and it can take a painstakingly long time to resolve them.

In addition to these challenges, states also must develop a suitable regulatory framework that addresses the needs of all parties involved. Building – and amending, where necessary – this framework is also a pretty complex and time-consuming process, and legislators have a tough job of finding the right balance between the interests of stakeholders and consumers.

Online gambling is yet another hurdle faced in many states. Some states, for example, have chosen to only legalize sports betting in land-based environments, while others have taken a more liberal approach, allowing online bookmakers to also accept bets. Just Tennessee currently offers online betting only.

Both offline and online sports betting legislation can also require constitutional amendments that require a public referendum. This takes even more time, and there are no guarantees the public will actually vote for the legalization of sports betting, anyway.

Georgia’s Path to Legalizing Sports Betting

In 2023, Georgia’s sports wagering legalization efforts remained linked to a wider gambling growth plan, encompassing brick-and-mortar casinos. This has been a trend in the state for a while, and it looks unlikely to change any time soon.

Rep. Ron Stephens, speaking with the Georgia Recorder, stated, “We walk away from $100 million every year in sports gambling, and other states, and places like Antigua, get that money from people here in Georgia. Let’s regulate it, tax it, and put the money in Hope and pre-K.”

The revenue figure cited by Stephens comes from research that doesn’t just involve sports betting, however, as it also takes land-based casinos and horse racing into account. Still, it’s a promising sign that Stephens is pro-legalization, and that should help move things along faster.

However, achieving legalized sports betting in Georgia is a more challenging process than in many other states. Georgia’s laws require legislature to pass two separate bills – one amending the constitution to allow new forms of gambling, and another detailing the specific regulations.

If this legislation was approved, voters would then have the final say, and it’s expected state residents will get to vote in 2024. Currently, polling shows 45.6% of voters are in favor of legalizing sports betting, while 42.6% are against it; 11.8% remain undecided.

Minnesota’s Slow but Steady Progress

Online sports betting legalization hasn’t been on the cards in Minnesota so much, but offline legalization was very close to being passed in 2022. The proposed legislation allowed land-based sportsbooks, and things were going well, until the legislature split over whether or not to expand betting locations beyond tribal casinos.

Thanks to the fact that the tribes basically have the final say, the fact that legislators included two state-owned racetracks as locations for sportsbooks was a nail in the coffin for the 2022 plans. After all, the tribes don’t pay any tax dollars to the state, so there’s no reason why they’d want competitors taking away their business.

However, talks have once again started, and many in the industry are hopeful that some kind of compromise can be made, which would allow bookmakers to operate in a way that minimizes interference with tribal gambling operations. We keep our fingers crossed that gamblers in the state will be able to explore legally the best NBA gambling sites sooner than later.

Missouri’s Journey to Sports Betting Approval

Last year, it looked as though the legalization of sports betting in Missouri was a done deal. However, when the Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs) came into play, the efforts by the state to legalize sports betting were stopped dead in their tracks. However, in 2023, things looked a bit more promising.

Missouri had three sports betting bills filed in 2023, and the first, SB 1, was pre-filed by Denny Hoskins, the State’s senator. His bill aimed to link sports betting and VLTs.

The second bill, SB 30, was introduced by Tony Luetkemeyer, another State senator – although his was a standalone sports betting bill, without any mention of VLTs.

Then, finally, there was HB 556, which was pre-filed by Dan Houx, a state representative. HB 556 was a standalone sports betting bill and was the bill with the highest chance of passing.

But unfortunately, all bills failed to be passed, with HB 556 being the last one standing. Lawmakers simply ran out of time to discuss HB 556. This means that legalization now won’t happen until at least 2024, although many are confident 2024 will be the year it happens.

Vermont: Waiting for the Governor

Sports betting is not currently legal in Vermont, but that could change at any time. The state has already managed to successfully pass the sports betting Bill H127 through the House. While the Senate made a couple of amendments to the bill, they also passed it, and it’s now been sent to Governor Phill Scott’s desk to sign. Once he’s signed it, the bill will officially become law, legalizing sports betting in the state.

While there’s no exact date for when the governor is expected to sign the bill, most experts seem to agree it will be some time at the beginning of 2024. The bill itself authorizes two to six sports betting apps; the exact number will be determined by the number of contracts the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery manages to secure with online gambling operators. Lawmakers involved in writing the bill, however, have stated they expected two or three.

Each operator will be required to pay $500,000 for a sports betting license, along with an annual fee for the next three years. This fee will decrease if more operators receive a license. The bill also states that the state’s minimum revenue-sharing rate will be set at 20%, which is in line with what we’ve seen from other states.

Unfortunately, in-person sports betting will remain illegal, and there doesn’t appear to be any major push to change this. The state doesn’t have the infrastructure of other states, and this means they can’t in-person sportsbooks would be impractical, so punters will be restricted to placing bets online.

North Carolina – A Surprising Turn Of Events?

With sports betting legalized in North Carolina, you may be wondering why we’re talking about them here. In reality, while it’s true that the state legalized sports betting, this only applied to physical, in-person betting. Online sports betting is still prohibited, although that looks likely to change in 2023.

Last year, the state looked set to legalize online sports betting, but it fell through at the last minute. Analysts expect it to pass in 2023, however, so it’s very likely North Carolinians will be able to bet online, too. Before we answer some FAQs, let’s take a quick look at a few examples of where sports betting is currently legal in the US: