BetOnline is great for sports gambling online in many ways, but especially with baseball. They constantly work to improve the online experience with their bonuses and other elements such as betting types. Legal online sports betting and mobile apps in the Sunshine State Legal, state-regulated sports betting is spreading rapidly from coast to coast across the US. In Florida, State Sen.
FloridaBetting.com is the leading source of information on where to bet in Florida, including sports, fantasy, and horse racing betting.
We rate and review online gambling sites and mobile betting apps that are licensed to operate in the state of Florida. Our team of experts also offers a complete database of information on Florida casinos, race tracks, poker rooms, lotteries, and off track betting facilities in the state of Florida.
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Online Sports Betting App Florida
Sports Betting in Florida
- Where to Bet on Sports in Florida – while sports fans wait for legalized sports betting in Florida, residents have access to the most popular daily fantasy sports app – which are an entertaining real money alternative.
- Daily Fantasy Apps that are allowed in Florida – both Draft Kings and Fan Duel are accessible to anyone in FL, we love both brands for various reasons and highly recommend creating an account at both!
Most forms of sports betting are outlawed in Florida with the only exceptions being parimutuel horse racing, greyhound racing (until 2021) and jai alai. We’ll dig into those activities further down this page, but the main thing to note is traditional sports betting is not permitted.
The odds of Florida gaming laws to authorize sports betting are low over the near future, but there are reasons to be optimistic. Some lawmakers are now in support of legalizing sports betting and have introduced legislation to that end.
In November 2019, Senator Jeff Brandes introduced SB 968 seeking to authorize two forms of sports betting:
- Retail sportsbooks operated by the state lottery
- Online and mobile betting platforms operated by commercial enterprises (such as DraftKings, William Hill, etc.)
Any bill that attempts to legalize Florida sports betting in any form will have to overcome two key hurdles.
First, the passage of Amendment 3 in 2018 has removed the legislature’s ability to expand gambling anywhere in Florida. Now, any gambling expansion must be approved by 60% of the voting public via statewide referendum. Some have made the argument that Amendment 3 may not actually apply to sports betting, but gaming opponents argue otherwise.
The outcome of that debate will either make it fairly easy for the Florida legislature to approve sports betting or significantly complicate the process by requiring statewide voter approval.
Second, the state’s gaming tribes hold considerable sway in all gambling matters and have said they’re not seriously considering sports betting at this time.
The closest alternative to sports betting in Florida right now is daily fantasy sports (DFS). Major DFS sites such as FanDuel and DraftKings are open for business in Florida and allow players to wager and win real money in one-day fantasy sports contests.
Horse Racing in Florida
Horse racing is a major industry in Florida and the state is home to numerous tracks that hold races year-round. Thoroughbred, quarter horse and harness racing are conducted in the South Florida area year-round at various tracks while thoroughbred races are held in the Tampa Bay area from December through May.
Florida horse racing betting is regulated by the Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering, which is a subdivision of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Parimutuel wagering is permitted in-person at licensed racetracks, online at licensed florida betting sites and at licensed ADW outlets located across the state.
- Tracks
- Off Track Betting Facilities
- Mobile and Online Options
Greyhound Racing in Florida
Florida is home to eleven active greyhound tracks and state law permits parimutuel greyhound betting. However, that is all set to change starting on January 1st, 2021. The fate of greyhound betting was decided by voters in the November 2018 midterm elections with a ballot initiative that asked the public if the state should outlaw greyhound racing.
Amendment 13 needed a 60% or greater yes vote in the election and easily cleared that with a final vote of 69% in favor and 31% against. With that vote, live greyhound racing will be prohibited beginning in 2021. Additionally, it will be prohibited to wager on live grey hound races held in Florida.
One bit of good news for greyhound racetrack operators is Amendment 13 included a decoupling measure that will allow the tracks to continue to offer other forms of gambling even after live racing is discontinued in 2021.
Legal Online Betting Sites
Under current Florida gambling law, racetracks are required to hold a minimum number of live races every year in order to offer other, more profitable forms of gaming. That is set to change with the decoupling measure.
Existing racetracks will still be able to offer those games, but nevertheless the long-term future is clear: greyhound racing will slowly wither and die in Florida. While existing racetracks continue forward as long as they can, no new tracks will be built and eventually the whole industry that once lived around greyhound racing will crawl to a stop.
Racing fans will still be allowed to bet on races held in other states via simulcasting, but greyhound racing as it occurs in Florida has a clear expiration date: 1 January 2021. Horse racing betting and online greyhound betting will be unaffected.
Poker, Slots, Blackjack, and Casino Games in Florida.
Florida is home to many casinos with slots, blackjack, roulette, craps and other standard gambling games. The types of games offered at any one casino vary depending on where that casino is located and who runs it due to a complex myriad of state laws, county laws and tribal gaming compacts.
There are three major types of casinos in Florida: tribal casinos, parimutuel facilities or “racinos” with attached casinos, and excursion casinos located on cruise ships.
Tribal casinos offer the most game variety of all land-based casinos in Florida. The Seminole tribe has exclusive rights to offer slots, blackjack and other casino-backed card games. The Miccosukee Tribe operates one casino in Florida, but otherwise the Seminoles dominant Florida tribal gaming.
Horse tracks, greyhound racing tracks and jai alai frontons are permitted to offer poker and video gambling machines such as electronic blackjack and electronic roulette. Additionally, racetracks and jai alai frontons located in Broward County and Miami-Dade County are allowed to host slot machines.
Cruise ship casinos offer the greatest variety of gambling options in Florida because they navigate to international waters where they may offer all types of casino games and sports betting.
Florida once had multiple cruise ship casinos to choose from, but the industry has hit hard times and now just a single cruise ship casino operates in the state. Victory Casino Cruises still sail seven days a week on five and six-hour excursions from Port Canaveral.
Florida Lotteries
Florida lotto games can be played in three main formats – draw games, scratch off games, and fast play games. A legal framework for a Florida online lottery does not exist, so players will have to visit an authorized retailer to purchase tickets in person.
Many states have legalized online lotteries and we hope Florida legislators will do so soon.
Florida Gambling Laws Explained
Most forms of land-based gambling are legal in Florida. The state has legal poker rooms, casinos, racing, jai alai betting and even sports betting if you count the casino cruise ship that travels to international waters every day.
Online betting in Florida is also allowed in the form of daily fantasy sports and online racing betting. Online sports betting, casino games and poker are prohibited – but we are hopeful that will change soon.
Where it gets confusing is understanding exactly when and where the various forms of gambling are legal in Florida. A combination of state law and tribal gaming compacts restrict certain types of gambling to certain locations.
We’ll dig into the details on another page, but the key points to understand Florida gambling laws follow:
- Horse racing tracks, greyhound racing tracks and jai alai frontons may offer racing/jai alai betting and host player-vs-player poker games
- In Miami-Dade County and Broward County only, those same facilities may also operate slot machines and electronic table games not run by human dealers
- The Seminole Tribe of Florida has the exclusive right to offer slot machines outside of Miami-Dade and Broward counties
- The Seminole Tribe of Florida has the exclusive right to offer house-backed card games such as blackjack, baccarat and three card poker run by human dealers
- The Miccosukee Tribe is permitted to offer slots and poker at its casino in Miami
The Seminole gaming compact plays an important role in shaping Florida betting law and the tribe holds considerable sway over lawmakers due to the amount of money it pumps into state coffers every year.
- Seminole Tribe: Florida’s largest gaming tribe and operates six casinos. The Seminoles pay the state more than $300 million a year in return for the exclusive right to offer dealer-operated card games such as blackjack and to be the only provider of slots outside of Miami-Dade County and Broward County
- Miccosukee Tribe: Operates one casino in Miami with slots, poker and bingo. The Miccosukee Tribe has refused to pay taxes on gaming revenues for years and is now fighting the federal government over a $1 billion tax bill
The sport of jai alai is unique to Florida in the USA and although the industry has certainly seen better days, there are still a few places to bet on jai alai. For the most part, jai alai serves as a means for Miami-area casinos to stay compliant with state law that requires gambling venues to host horse races, greyhound races or jai alai matches.
Actual jai alai betting is somewhat rare, but the following facilities do still support jai alai betting markets:
- The Casino at Dania Beach: Evening matches Wednesday – Sunday at 7 PM, matinee matches Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 1 PM
- Magic City Casino: Matches every Wednesday – Sunday at 3PM and 7PM
- Casino Miami: Weekend matches at 12PM and 7PM (seasonal availability only)
- King’s Court Jai Alai & Poker Room: Jai alai coming June 2019
No, sports betting in Florida is not legal at this time.
Sports betting in Florida
Sports betting does not sound close to becoming a reality anytime soon, as there are a number of factors working against it.
Gambling is legal at the state’s tribal casinos and pari-mutuel facilities. The Seminole Tribe of South Florida has operated several brick-and-mortar casinos, paying a flat fee to the state in revenue. However, horse racetracks and jai-alai frontons were greenlighted for another form of gambling, designated player card games, sometimes resulting in wagering up to $50,000 per hand. The Seminole Tribe was unhappy that they did not have exclusivity to table-game wagering and balked at paying money back to the state.
Negotiations have been underway to make the Seminole Tribe, the pari-mutuel facilities and Republican Governor Ron DeSantis all happy. While Gov. DeSantis has been reluctant to expand gambling in the state, legislators have been working on a deal that would make the tribal casinos a hub for sports betting. This would essentially mean the tribal casinos would get a percentage of the overall gambling revenue made even outside of their facilities. The sticking point might be if the Seminole Tribe only wants sports betting at their brick-and-mortar facilities, completely shutting out the racetracks, jai-alai frontons, etc.
Another obstacle might be the voters themselves. While a deal could be hammered out to make please everyone, a ballot initiative passed by voters in 2018 required any gambling expansion outside of the tribal casinos and the lottery required to be initiated by the voters, not the state legislature.
As mentioned above, legalizing sports betting in the state doesn’t seem to be close at this point.
Online sportsbooks in Florida
None.
Retail sportsbooks in Florida
None.
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