Legal sports betting has arrived in Louisiana! The 2018 Supreme Court decision to repeal the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) paved the way for states throughout the country to legalize both online and retail sports betting, while at the same time ending a decades-long stranglehold on legal sports betting that Nevada had enjoyed. It only took 2.5 years for leaders in the Pelican State to ask voters to approve both online and retail sports betting. In November 2020, all but nine parishes (55 out of 64) voted to approve the legalization of sports betting in their respective jurisdictions.

Top Louisiana Sports Betting Offers

After the initiative was passed by voters in 2020, the legislature passed legislation detailing the framework of sports betting in the state, and now the regulatory process is progressing. Retail sports betting launched at a few casinos in the state in early November 2021. Online sportsbook began about two months later in January 2022. Sports betting kiosks at bars and restaurants throughout the state will start rolling out later in the year.

Read on to learn about what we know so far about online and land-based sports betting in Louisiana, including a deeper dive into the legalization process, which sportsbooks are coming to the state, which banking options will be available, and more. Let’s get started.

Louisiana Sports Betting Launch Plan

Caesars and Penn Entertainment opened retail sportsbooks at their existing casinos on November 1, 2021. Betfred was actually the first sportsbook to go live in the state due to its partnership with the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe, which is not regulated by the state. The Tribe’s Paragon Casino Resort in Marksville opened its Betfred-powered sportsbook on October 6, 2021. Online sports betting began on January 28, 2022.

Legal Louisiana Online and Retail Sports Betting

All of the most populous parishes (referred to as ‘counties’ in other U.S. states) voted to formally legalize sports betting back in November 2020. Put another way, about 97 percent of Louisiana’s residents currently live within a parish that voted YES on legalizing online and retail sports betting. 

That’s great news for land-based casinos and riverboat gambling establishments in the state that attract both seasonal and yearly tourists to their businesses. The existing casinos in the state are allowed to apply for a sports betting license, which includes two online “skins” that can be used by an online operator like FanDuel.

There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic about the future prospects of Louisiana’s legal sports betting market. The state has an established casino industry and is comfortable with gambling. There will be land-based kiosks throughout the state that will cater to those who are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with online sports betting. And lastly, the state attracts millions of visitors from throughout the world, many of whom may be inclined to wager on sports while enjoying the world-class restaurants and entertainment of New Orleans.

Online and retail sports betting business could soon be booming as a result of Pelican State voters’ approval of legalizing the American pastime of placing real money wagers on the sporting events they’ve grown to love. Louisiana and legal sports betting will soon enjoy a competitive yet stable relationship in all but a handful of low-population parishes, so get ready… because legal online and retail sports betting in the Pelican State is just around the corner!

Excluded Parishes for Louisiana Sports Betting

If you happen to be physically located in one of the following Louisiana parishes (whether you actually reside there or not), then you will NOT be able to participate in the LA legal sports betting market — regardless of whether that is retail or online.

These Louisiana parishes voted NO to legal sports betting, meaning online services will be geo-restricted once sports betting launches. In an unusual move, rather than having a statewide vote to legal sports betting statewide, voters in Louisiana voted parish-by-parish to legalize sports betting. So if a parish voted no, as the nine above parishes did, they are geofenced out and sports betting will not be allowed there. This is more work for the sportsbooks but more accurately represents the will of the people at the local level.

Who Can Participate in the LA sports betting market?

Aside from the nine excluded parishes, there are a number of other restrictions on precisely who will be allowed to place real money wagers once Louisiana sports betting launches.

Louisiana Sports Betting Kiosks

Not only did Louisiana sports betting legislative efforts pave the way for online and retail sports betting through the Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB), but laws also now permit the limited use of sports betting kiosks — which will be overseen separately by the Louisiana Lottery Corporation. These ‘kiosks’ will appear in legal parishes and in select food and entertainment businesses that serve alcoholic beverages, including pubs, bars, and dine-in restaurants.

Louisiana sports betting kiosks are sure to be a hit with sports fans across the state once they become available. Lottery kiosks are already available in the state, and it stands to reason that sports betting kiosks will be popular with those who prefer to wager using cash and aren’t interested in setting up an online sportsbook account.

Louisiana Sportsbooks

The licensing rules approved by the legislature allow for up to 40 sportsbook licenses, which means that Louisiana could end up being one of the most competitive, open markets in the country. This list will continue to grow as the market matures, but the following sportsbooks are already live in the state or are expected to open up shop soon.

Caesars Sportsbook

Caesars Sportsbook recently opened retail sportsbooks at its five properties in the state and is a sure bet to be one of the leading online sportsbooks in the state. Here is a list of all the Caesars properties in Louisiana:

FanDuel Sportsbook

FanDuel is an extremely popular brand in both online sports betting and Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS), and made its way to Louisiana as an online sportsbook through its established partnership with Boyd Gaming. Boyd actually owns 5 percent of FanDuel, and the two companies have partnered in other states, including Illinois, Iowa, and Pennsylvania. Boyd Gaming owns several casinos in Louisiana, including:

BetMGM

BetMGM also partnered with Boyd Gaming, specifically the Sam’s Town Casino in Shreveport, to enter the Louisiana market. This makes sense because Boyd does not have its own online sportsbook product and has up to 10 online skins available due to its five casinos in the state.

Golden Nugget Sportsbook

The Golden Nugget has its own land-based casino located in Lake Charles, and can operate the Golden Nugget Sportsbook through that property. In somewhat of a surprise move, Golden Nugget partnered with DraftKings, but that does not preclude the casino company from bringing its own sportsbook to Louisiana later on.

DraftKings Sportsbook

Popular DFS and sports betting company DraftKings partnered with Golden Nugget to go live in the state. This was a surprise move because Golden Nugget already has a sportsbook, but the companies must have come to an agreement that was beneficial to both parties.

BetRivers

BetRivers gained access to the Louisiana market by partnering with Boom Entertainment, a technology provider to many online casino companies. It is currently unclear which retail casino BetRivers has a partnership with.

ESPN BET LA

The newest online sportsbook in Louisiana, ESPN BET went live on November 14, 2023. PENN Entertainment is running ESPN BET through a partnership with the sports television network.

bet365 Sportsbook

A brand new addition to Louisiana is bet365, one of the biggest sportsbooks in the world but still expanding here in the States. bet365 partnered with the Amelia Belle Casino and will be a great option for residents and visitors to the state.

Bet Types

A wide range of sports betting types will be available in Louisiana once online sports betting goes live, including:

Louisiana Sports Betting Promos

The legal U.S. sports betting market has already seen a number of innovative welcome and promotional offers that customers are able to take advantage of once they have successfully created an account and made a real money deposit. 

Here is a list of some of the welcome bonuses and offers that we’ve seen in other states — all of which will likely be available in Louisiana.

Deposit Bonuses / Match Bonuses

Although they can mandate hefty playthrough requirements in order to become available for withdrawal, initial deposit match bonuses can give new customers an opportunity to multiply their first-time deposits to the tune of up to $1,000 (or even more), depending on the sportsbook or company that is offering the promotion. Generally, the sportsbook matches a customer’s first deposit up to a certain amount in the form of site credit.

Bonus Bets

It is common for legal online sportsbooks to allow new customers an opportunity to make a “bonus bet” in order to become familiar with the company’s software and offerings. Bonus bet promotions are generally extended to new sign-ups and typically range from $5 to $25 depending on the online sportsbook. Similar to other welcome offers, there are typically Terms & Conditions that must be met before customers are allowed to “cash out” the proceeds.

Odds Boosts

Odds boosts typically grant customers a higher payout on a promotional wager, usually related to a local team or high-profile game. One example might be a Saints Super Bowl future “boosted” to +1500 from +1000. They are often used as marketing tools to get people interested in wagering on a certain team or sport, but they do have some value if you are interested in the sport or think the wager has a good chance of winning.

Louisiana Sportsbook Banking Options

There are many ways to fund your online account in Louisiana. Most of these banking options will be available at your favorite online sportsbook:

ACH eCheck – This will likely be one of the more common methods for Louisiana sports betting customers to make deposits and withdrawals. Simply link your bank account details to the legal online sportsbook, and then deposits can be made near instantly. It is important to note that withdrawals can often take longer (3-5 business days)… but still, this will be a great and widely-used option to transact with legal online sportsbooks. Be sure to check with your financial institution before using ACH to fund your account. Some banks do not allow customers to make deposits to online sportsbooks.

Bill Pay (Online Banking) – Individuals who have the “Bill Pay” module linked to their bank account can use this method to enable deposits onto Louisiana sports betting sites once they go live.

PayNearMe – This service has quickly become the go-to method for easy deposits for legal sports betting sites in other states. After selecting PayNearMe as a deposit option, a unique barcode is generated that can be taken to participating retailers for near-instant cash deposits. Two of the participating retailers in this program include CVS and 7-Eleven. Once you take the unique barcode to these retailers and deposit the amount there, the funds will generally appear in your legal online sportsbook account within minutes. Although this is a great option for deposits, there are no withdrawals using this method.

Major Debit and Credit Cards (Visa/Mastercard) – In the majority of cases, legal online sportsbook customers in Louisiana will be able to make deposits using their bank-issued Visa or Mastercard. However, there are a number of financial institutions in the U.S. that still block all transactions for real money wagering activities… even if the corresponding services are completely licensed and legal. Bank of America is one of these institutions, and will not allow customers to deposit onto sports betting sites. For the most part, major credit cards can only be used for deposits, and not withdrawals — so keep this in mind once Louisiana sports betting has officially launched.

PayPal – One of the world’s premiere eWallets, PayPal has become a must-have service for many who participate in the legal online sports betting market throughout the country. Once all the information has been linked, this service can be used to make deposits and for withdrawals.

Paper Check (Cashouts/Withdrawals) – In some circumstances, legal online sports betting sites may allow customers to withdraw funds by soliciting a paper check. Note that this option generally takes up to 10 business days for the check to physically arrive at the address the individual used when registering their account. This method is very limited, and can generally not be used for deposits.

Cash at Casino cage – Since each of the state’s 19 casinos will potentially have an online sports betting partner, it is likely that most of those casinos will allow customers to fund their online accounts by making deposits at the casino cage. This is a good option for those who prefer to deal in cash and live near a retail casino.

Louisiana Sports Betting FAQ

Is sports betting legal in Louisiana?

Yes! After 55 out of 64 Louisiana parishes voting to approve legalized sports betting in the Pelican State back in November 2020, the Louisiana legislature passed a law creating a regulatory structure to bring legal sports betting to the state. The state’s 20 existing casinos all are eligible to apply for a sports betting license, which means we could eventually see over a dozen different mobile operators in the state.

What if I don’t want to bet online? Are there any other options?

Funny you should ask. Unlike many other states, the Louisiana Lottery will allow sports betting kiosks to be placed in bars and restaurants throughout the state, similar to the popular lottery terminals that are already in establishments statewide. This will be a good option for those who want to bet using cash and/or aren’t interested in setting up an online sports betting account.

Which sportsbooks are coming to Louisiana?

There are already several large casino companies operating in Louisiana. Many of these operators have opened sportsbooks at their retail casino locations and have partnered with an online sportsbook to bring online sports betting to the state. The following sportsbooks are currently operating in Louisiana or will be soon: