Georgia Online Sports Betting

Georgia is one of the strictest states in the union when it comes to online betting and gambling overall. State laws severely limit gambling in the state with bingo and other charitable games the only legal forms of gambling at the moment. There is no physical casino in the state currently, nor are there any horse racing or greyhound racing tracks in the Peach State.

However, there has been significant movement on the state’s efforts to legalize sportsbooks and casinos. Since 2020, five different bills in the state legislature were in some way related to sports gambling and the legislature ended the 2022 session as close as they’ve ever come to passing a law. Current gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is very much in favor of the state legalizing gambling for a system similar to the NJ sports betting sites.

For the time being, however, the only legal options for betting online in Georgia are Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) and the state’s lottery.

The Peach State while tough on most forms of gambling offers up some interesting legal options including DFS for sports bettors, poker leagues, charitable gambling and a great land-based and online lottery.

Georgia has a 6% state tax rate on gambling winnings.

Large gambling wins in Florida over $1200 may be subject to an additional Federal Tax.

We recommend contacting your tax attorney for full details if you have a big win.

While the legal gambling options are limited in Georgia, the minimum gambling ages are quite liberal with 18 years-of-age being the minimum across all forms of legal gambling.

Sports betting along with many types of betting is prohibited in Georgia, though it could change by the end of 2023. Gambling proponents have long been arguing in favor of extending legal gambling to include sports betting in Georgia, however, the state has yet to pass the several sports betting laws that have been discussed on the floor of the legislature.

UPDATE:

Marcus Wiedower, state representative in Georgia has proposed a house bill to permit both online and in-person sports betting in Georgia.

Georgia could become one of very few states that legalized in-person/retail and internet sports betting at the same time.

In May 2018, New Jersey won its challenge to the Federal Government ban on sports betting in the USA. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the law to end the federal prohibition of sports betting.

Lawmakers in Georgia see things somewhat differently and the answers to the questions ‘is sports betting legal in Georgia?’ and ‘is online sports betting legal in Georgia?’ are both overwhelmingly strong “No’s”.

However, even the winds of change are even beginning to blow through the purple Peach State. In March 2020, State Senator Brandon Beach raised the topic of sports betting to create jobs and fill the coffers of the state budget, then the global pandemic hit. We await continuation of that debate in Georgia in the next legislative session in 2023.

Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) are not covered by any Federal gambling bans, and as such (at the Federal level of government), DFS is not considered to be gambling; it is a game of skill, not a game determined by random chance.

In-the-past, Georgia has attempted to pass legislation that would have regulated and taxed DFS sites that operate in the state and accept players from the state of Georgia. The Bill HB 118 most recently made it through the State House of Georgia and made it as far as to the Senate, however, failed to get the required votes to pass into law before the legislature session adjourned. Ironically, if HB 118 had become law in Georgia, it would have implemented a variety of regulations designed for increased player security and keep customers safe from data mining.

For the time being, until a law passes to regulate DFS sites in Georgia, all the major DFS companies are accepting players from Georgia to participate in their real money DFS competitions and those players can legally keep any winnings that they might accumulate in DFS play.

Once the matter of legal sports betting has been adopted by a reluctant Georgia State Legislature, at that time, eSports betting will then assist players in the Peach State to win in exciting new ways without having to jump onboard a cruise ship casino to do so. It can be seen then that legalized eSports betting in Georgia will add diverse betting opportunities for the state’s residents and visitors

What are eSports?

eSports (video game play at its highest level, now turned professional) has given rise to competitive gaming betting and gambling.

eSports can trace its ancestral roots back to groups of friends hosting LAN parties and playing video games into the wee small hours of the night. However, today, it has become a full-fledged industry, an official network of professional gaming tournaments and leagues playing games like Dota 2, Overwatch and Fortnite.

The annual eSports market is currently valued at almost $1 billion per annum, and that number will only grow in the coming years. With every passing tournament, the prizes get richer and the viewership increases.

Of course, where there is money to be made, sports-bettors will surely follow.

Global Betting on eSports is growing rapidly each year, with an ever-increasing number of sportsbooks offering international betting markets across all the major eSports tournaments worldwide.

Rather than creating an underground economy, betting on eSports may well potentially assist in easing the sports betting legalization process in Georgia and help in adding to the state’s tax revenues to pay for improved citizen services and infrastructure projects.

Horse Racing Betting is unavailable for residents of, and visitors to the state of Georgia. While surrounding states legalized both horse and greyhound racing long ago, Georgia’s lawmakers stood-firm and continued their stanch-stance against horse racing.

In 2012, House Resolution Bill 1 was introduced to Georgia’s State Legislature to rally for the legalization of Horse Racing. Things even progressed as far as House Resolution Bill 4 to debate how the state’s fledgling racing industry would be run, but all attempts to pass the legislation stalled in the house.

Trackside Betting

There are no Horse Racing tracks in the State of Georgia.

Off Track Betting (OTB) in Georgia

There are no OTB facilities in the State of Georgia.

Online Horse Racing in Georgia

Residents of Georgia and visitors to the Peach State do not have access to Online Betting on Horse Racing. See above section on ‘Georgia Online Sports Betting Laws’ for further details.

Visit our gambling in Georgia page for more information on the best online casinos in Georgia