Legal sports betting occurs at the state level, and each state that legalizes sports betting is a separate, unique market with its own sports betting sites. The following states are in the process of legalization and could pass a sports betting bill in the next 3-4 years. States That Could Legalize Sports Betting The following states have legalized retail sports betting (in-person bets), but not online sports betting: Online sports betting is legal in the following states:

In most states, the agency that regulates other forms of legal gambling, or the state lottery, is in charge of overseeing sports betting. State-specific gambling regulation agencies oversee each state's sports betting industry. More than two dozen states offer online sports betting, while a handful of states only allow in-person wagering at retail locations. More than 30 states currently offer legal sportsbooks in some form. With the federal ban removed, the choice to pass sports betting legislation is in the hands of individual states, and many have taken action.

Passed in 1992, PASPA, with limited exceptions, prohibited states from legalizing sports betting. following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) by the Supreme Court in May of 2018. Once the sole domain of Nevada, legal sports betting has spread across the U.S. was due to the removal of a federal prohibition, which the Supreme Court struck down in May 2018. The rapid expansion of sports betting legalization in the U.S.

The scarcity of sports betting wasn’t due to a lack of interest. In 2022, more than 30 states have legalized sports gambling, with mobile wagering legal in more than two dozen states. In April 2018, Nevada was the only state where bettors could legally place sports bets online or at retail sportsbooks.

States with legal online sports betting