Residents of Indiana welcomed September with the official launch of legal sports betting in the state. Operators with licenses are expected to make the most of the upcoming NFL season.
Three establishments have so far opened their doors, and two more are waiting for approvals by the end of the week. Indiana sports enthusiasts are all the more excited over the first weekend of the NFL.
News Highlights
- Indiana is officially the latest state to legalize retail sports betting.
- There are intentions to expand into some form of interactive betting, especially with mobile.
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- Legal sports betting in the US is slowly reaching its momentum with more states adopting the practice.
Indiana Gaming Commission Approve Legal Sports Betting
Last Wednesday, the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) released authorization for the first five casinos legally able to launch sports betting practices. Since then, three of them used the opportunity as soon as September 1. They were:
To mark the onset of this new era for Indiana sports betting, these establishments will have some living legends make the first bets at their locals. Mike Ditka and David Hester of the Chicago Bears will launch betting at Ameristar. Hollywood Casino hired Anthony Muñoz of the Cincinnati Bengals and Tony Perez of the Cincinnati Reds.
Casinos Following Suit
The remaining two casinos expected to catch up before the big NFL weekend are Horseshoe Hammond, which launched on September 4. The other one is French Lick Casino, with plans of launching on September 6.
A couple of applicants, however, still seem to be waiting on IGC’s approval – Winner’s Circle and Blue Chip Casino. Nevertheless, this is expected to get sorted out shortly, as Sara Gonso Tait, Executive Director of the IGC, pointed out in her statement:
I don’t think the remaining proposals from operators are far off. I think you’ll see us add retail launch authorizations for the remaining properties in short cause.
Final Touches on Legal Sports Betting in Indiana
Before sports betting could officially go live across the state, IGC made some last touches and tied some loose ends. These were mainly based on stakeholders’ recommendations and comments made to the draft version, and helped better deal with serious questions, including collegiate sporting events and unregulated operators.
Sports betting registrants such as affiliates saw these changes as rather good news. One of the points determined that they only have to pay a one-time application fee of $500, without any renewal charges.
Will Indiana Go Mobile?
As Tait has assured everyone in the industry, applications and proposals on the issue keep coming in, and the Commission is more than prepared to handle the matter. Although Indiana may have gotten a later start than some states, they are coming full circle on their legal sports betting.
We have received mobile-related materials and submissions. We’ve had some things happen related to mobile that are essential. GeoComply is now a licensed supplier, which is huge. The emergency rules already contemplate mobile. We’re all focused on retail right now, but we’ll be able to shift to mobile once that’s requested.
Legal Sports Betting in the US
The issue of legal sports betting across the US was first brought to the public’s attention following the lawsuit between the state of New Jersey and the major sports leagues regarding the status of the PASPA Act. As the case came to a close, the US Supreme Court declared PASPA to be unconstitutional, making it legitimate for each state to define sports betting on their territory.
Since then, many states followed in New Jersey’s footsteps and broke through the restrictions, nowadays offering either retail sports betting or online wagers as well.
- Nevada and Pennsylvania have opened their sports betting markets for both retail and online sports betting.
- Iowa also launched its sports betting industry in early 2019.
- West Virginia recently added online sports wagers to the legal land-based betting industry since 2018.
Which States Will Soon Legalize Sports Betting?
Oregon and Mississippi are two other states expected to complete the process by the end of the year. However, each of them is facing different terms and conditions, which could potentially cause a delay.
Here’s an overview of the states that will soon legalize sports betting in the US. It’s safe to say that sports betting enthusiasts are eagerly expecting 2020 as the predicted date of the official launches.
- Oregon is expecting to get their legal online sports betting from the many tribal casinos in the state.
- Mississippi still needs some details smoothed out – mobile wagers are permitted at one single tribal casino so far.
- Rhode Island is even closer than the last two states since Governor Gina Raimondo signed the bill way back in March.
- Illinois and Tennessee seem to have all the proper legislation ready for both retail and online sports betting, either by remote accounts or in-person registrations at the venues.