Louisiana

Louisiana is poised to enter the US’ mobile sports betting ecosystem, after the Pelican State’s Gaming Control Board confirmed that eligible operators can commence the activity from 8am local time tomorrow (Friday 28 January).

Caesars, which kicked-off the region’s retail sports betting scene in October; BetMGM; DraftKings; and FanDuel, alongside Boyd Gaming, have all moved quickly to confirm that they’ll be ready to move forward when that time comes, with it thought that with fellow operators such as Barstool, and WynnBet, which began accepting registrations this week, will follow suit.

A total of 13 of the maximum of 20 permitted licenses have been issued thus far, with digital sports betting permitted to take place in 55 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes that voted in its favour.

This digital debut comes ahead of Sunday’s NFL conference championships which will see the Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers, as well as the Kansas City host the Cincinnati Bengals, whose quarterback, Joe Burrow, played college football at Louisiana State University.

Ronnie Johns, chair of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, confirmed the imminent launch in a press statement: “Currently eligible sports wagering operators will be approved to accept mobile bets as early as 8am Friday morning.

“The remaining mobile sports wagering operators are in the process of meeting statutory and regulatory requirements and will be approved once those requirements are met.”

Following the opening of a new retail sportsbook in Louisiana alongside Golden Nugget Casino Lake Charles, DraftKings has confirmed that it will expand this partnership upon the start of mobile sports betting. 

This will become the 17th state to offer the group’s online sportsbook, with the betting and gaming firm live in 18 US jurisdictions when including retail offerings.

“There have been several DraftKings developments in Louisiana in the last year alone, including the debut of our daily fantasy products and retail sportsbook, and this latest online sportsbook launch is another significant milestone,” said Matt Kalish, co-founder and president of DraftKings North America

“Although Louisiana bettors have previously been able to place wagers in person at our Golden Nugget Casino Lake Charles location, the arrival of mobile betting greatly enhances accessibility and adoption potential within the Pelican State.”