While Tennessee sports betting will be celebrating its two-year anniversary shortly, other states haven’t been as lucky. Now available in 30 states and Washington D.C., legal sports betting is still expanding.
Which states will be next to launch between now and 2023? There are a handful of states gearing up to get in on the action.
States Expected to Launch Sports Betting in 2022-2023
Kansas
The Sunflower State certainly wasn’t messing around when it came to sports betting. After being signed into law in May 2022, it will officially launch just in time for the 2022 NFL season.
Kansas will hold a “soft launch” on September 1 for the state’s four casinos before fully opening up retail and sports betting on September 8. At full maturity, there will be 12 online sportsbooks available for Kansas bettors. The six tribal casinos across the state are also permitted to offer retail betting as soon as they are ready to do so.
Ohio
Ohio has taken the opposite approach of Kansas. Signed into law at the end of 2021, Ohio has a launch date of January 1, 2023. The reason for the delay? Ohio will be undertaking the largest simultaneous launch in US sports betting history. Once fully matured, the Buckeye State will have up to 25 online sports betting apps, 40 retail sportsbooks, and thousands of betting kiosks.
This means beginning January 1, Ohio sports bettors will be able to walk into casinos and even grocery stores to place bets, in addition to mobile sportsbooks. With upwards of 20 apps launching the same day, there will be no shortage of new user promotions to take advantage of, such as the BetMGM Ohio bonus code.
Massachusetts
Massachusetts was one of the more surprising states to sign legal sports betting into law this year. After lawmakers weren’t able to come to an agreement on collegiate sports betting and tax rates for operators, it appeared as though any legislation would be put off until 2023.
The state’s legislative period for this year ended on July 31, and on August 1 at 5 a.m. a deal was announced that laid the groundwork for sports wagering in the state. There’s no launch date set yet, but there’s hope betting will be rolled out by the end of the year to take advantage of football season.
Maine
Sports betting has technically been legal in Maine since May 2022, but unlike Massachusetts and Kansas, there doesn’t seem to be a push to actually roll it out. In fact, Milt Champion, executive director of the Maine Gambling Control Unit, has said sports betting in the Pine Tree State may not be ready until 2024.
California
All eyes will be on the Golden State as the industry awaits the results of two ballot initiatives that will be in front of California voters this November. Prop 26 and Prop 27 are two opposing initiatives, as the former would legalize retail wagering only and the latter would bring online sports betting to the state.
States to Watch in 2023
There are some states that do not currently have any sports betting legislation in place but have been making attempts.
- North Carolina looked poised to join the list above, but a last-minute amendment that banned college betting killed the bill.
- Florida actually had legalized sports betting for about a month before a federal judge ruled the 2021 Gaming Compact between the state and Seminole Tribe was invalid.
- Texas made a push to legalize sports betting in 2021 but ultimately fell short. The state legislature only holds sessions in odd-numbered years, meaning 2023 is the next opportunity. There has been growing bipartisan support in the state, so Texas sports fans should expect to see a bill presented to lawmakers next year.
