Idaho Online Sports Betting

Neither the strictest state, nor the most liberal, Idaho comes to average center-ground when it comes to gambling freedoms when compared to other U.S. states. Although online poker and online sports betting are still illegal, Idaho does permit some forms of online betting (most notably online horse racing betting), however, something like a NJ online sportsbook is still a faint mirage in the future. The state is looking at potentially expanding its online betting options down the track.

Amending Idaho’s laws to bring online sports betting to the state may require some maneuvering and political willpower from the State’s lawmakers, however given the rapid changes taking place with sports betting currently across the United States, anything is possible.

However, to date the Idaho State Legislature has not publicly announced any bills or desire to pursue bills devoted to legalizing sports betting.

Tribal Casinos, both online and land-based horse racing betting, the popular State Lottery and charitable gaming make up Idaho’s legal gambling options.

Idaho has a 7.8 % state tax on gambling winnings.

Large gambling wins in Idaho 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.

Across the board, ALL forms of legal gambling available in the state of Idaho have a set minimum age of 18, including Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS), the State Lottery, Charitable Gambling, casinos and Horse Racing.

Currently in Idaho, the state’s gaming laws not only prohibit companies from offering betting on sports, but they also prohibit players from participating in the practice.

It appears unlikely that the state will adopt changes to its Idaho sports betting laws any time soon. There has not been a single serious attempt to legalize sports betting in Idaho for quite a number of years now, and given that even fantasy sports are against the law in Idaho, this shows how that Idaho is a long way from adopting and legalizing actual widespread sports betting.

Regardless of the May 2018 ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court (when betting on sports became legal in the U.S. at the Federal level and was handed back to each state for self-determination), Idaho still has no legal land-based sportsbooks at this early stage of the legalization process. However, if faced by post-global pandemic economic down turn and state budget shortfall that may change into the future.

For the time being, aficionados of sports betting in Idaho can take place in betting on horse racing, or interestingly, betting on pool, snooker or billiards is also legal in Idaho.

Online Sports Betting is currently prohibited in Idaho, and state lawmakers have shown little to no inclination towards legalization. As in many of the more conservative states, the laws of Idaho could potentially be used to prosecute people for betting on sports online. It has not happened yet in Idaho; however, it is an example of the power of the state’s anti-gambling proponents. Idahoan State officials haven’t officially come out against sports betting online, however, significantly, they haven’t committed to it either.

Meanwhile for fans of online sports betting in Idaho, whilst Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) are deemed illegal in Idaho, online horse & greyhound racing betting are completely legal in the state for its residents and visitors.

At the federal level of lawmaking, Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) have been made fully exempt from any federal gambling bans. According to the nation’s Federal lawmakers, DFS has been determined to be contest test player’s skills, rather than a game of chance. In short, DFS is not considered gambling.

However, the Idaho Attorney General ruled that DFS was against Idaho’s gambling laws in a May 2016 news release. 

“My concern is that the daily fantasy sports offerings my office reviewed require participants to risk money for a cash prize contingent upon individual athletes’ collective performances in various future sporting events. As I see it, this falls within Idaho’s definition of gambling,” Attorney General Lawrence Wasden said in the release.

The major DFS competition sites have exited the state and do not offer any cash-based contests to Idaho residents or visitors until legislation or a favorable court decision legalizing DFS occurs.

When sports betting finally becomes legal in Idaho, eSports betting will assist players to win in new and revolutionary ways and as a result, add to diverse betting opportunities and assist in developing economic prosperity in the Gem State.

What are eSports?

Basically, eSports has transformed video-game-play at the very highest level into a professional sport. In rare scenarios, it’s played on an individual level, however, it’s predominantly played through teams and across different leagues and tournaments.

The electronic games themselves are like different sports types, in some ways. For example, in eSports, CS:GO, Starcraft and Call of Duty are equivalent to football, hockey and baseball.

Worldwide betting on eSports is growing quickly and it continues to gain in popularity year-on-year, with an increasing number of sportsbooks around the world now offering a range of betting markets across all major eSports tournaments.

With that kind of unprecedented exponential growth, look for betting on eSports to assist in oiling the legislative pathways to sports betting legalization in Idaho and driving growth in the state’s tax revenues for its citizens.

Horse Racing Betting (Horse racing in Idaho is legally administered in the state by the Idaho Racing Commission) for residents of the state of Idaho and its visitors.

In Idaho, betting on horse racing can occur at live races, at off-track betting facilities and online.

Tracksides

Idaho is home to two year-round racetracks and a number of fairgrounds that host a few races every year. All offer legal betting options each year.

Off Track Betting (OTB) in Idaho

Despite being a little in decline, there still are 3 OTB operating locations in Idaho. Betting on races in Idaho, across the mainland United States and most major racing locations worldwide like Dubai, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom are all available.

Online Horse Racing in Idaho

Two of the leading horse and dog racing betting websites that operate in the United States are both open to accept gamblers resident of, or visitors to the state of Idaho. Subsequently, all customers from the state of Idaho can place real money bets online on all horse racing and in particular, the big ‘out-of-state’ races like the Triple Crown and Kentucky Derby, all perfectly 100% legal.

Visit our Gambling in Idaho page to read about the best online casinos in Idaho