Louisiana Gaming Control Board approves several additional sports betting licenses
With Louisiana online sports betting on the horizon for early 2022, the state gaming commission is currently focused on approving each of the 13 brick-and-mortar sports betting licenses for Louisiana.
Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chairman Ronnie Johns recently approved two additional sports betting licenses for Bossier City casinos Margaritaville and Boomtown, bringing the total commercially licensed casinos up to eight. The Tunica-Biloxi Tribe-owned Paragon Casino Resort is also licensed for sports betting.
Nine casinos currently have sports betting licenses
Margaritaville and Boomtown join Harrah’s New Orleans, L’Auberge Casino in Baton Rouge, Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City, Boomtown Casino in Harvey, the Golden Nugget and L’Auberge Casino in Lake Charles. Five additional casinos are awaiting sports betting license approval.
Johns previously told Saturday Down South the casino licensing process was based on the order the applications came into the Louisiana Gaming Control Board. The remaining five casinos need to be approved by the Louisiana State Police before they can be ruled on by the control board.
After the 13 casinos are approved for licenses, seven additional licenses will still be up for grabs in the state. Louisiana allows 20 sports betting licenses, one each for the the state’s 15 riverboat casinos, four racinos (horse tracks) and one land-based casino.
The gaming commission is also working on the Lousiana online sports betting. The goal is for online sports betting in Louisiana to begin by Jan. 1, 2022, according to Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chairman Ronnie Johns. The chairman previously told Saturday Down South that Louisiana State Police is working to verify sportsbook partners and allow the distribution of online sports betting licenses to begin soon.
In addition to the 20 brick-and-mortar sports betting licenses, the state also include two mobile licenses, which could mean a potential of 41 “skins” for Louisiana online sports betting. The one additional skin would be allotted to the Louisiana Lottery Corporation.
What online sportsbooks will be available?
So what will be available when online sports betting is launched? FanDuel and DraftKings both currently offer Daily Fantasy Sports contests in the state and will also be part of the online sports betting launch as well.
Caesars Entertainment has also been confirmed, as the sportsbook app is already available for download in Louisiana. Users cannot place bets as of yet, but can register and fund accounts.
Caesars will offer in-person sports betting at its properties Harrah’s New Orleans and Horseshoe Bossier City. Each casino will soon take in-person bets at temporary retail locations, before the unveiling of their new Caesars Sportsbooks. In the fall of 2022, Isle of Capri Lake Charles will be renovated into Horseshoe Lake Charles and reopen with an additional Caesars Sportsbook location.
Additionally, Caesars acquired a 20-year, exclusive naming-rights partnership with the New Orleans Saints to rebrand New Orleans’ downtown stadium as the Caesars Superdome. Caesars Sportsbook is also the official sportsbook partner of LSU Athletics.
WynnBET will also be available in the state, as the company announced it secured online sports betting market access this past October. A source previously told Saturday Down South that WynnBET has secured a partnership for its online sports betting app through one of Caesars’ physical casino properties in Louisiana.
WynnBET is currently available in Arizona, Colorado, Indian, Michigan, New Jersey, Tennessee and Virginia.
It’s safe to assume the Barstool Sportsbook will also be available, as Penn National Gaming has partnered with two casinos that currently offer in-person sports betting. L’Auberge Casino Baton Rouge and Boomtown Casino Hotel both offer in-person sports betting and are Penn National Gaming properties.
Where will Louisiana online sports betting be legal?
Sports betting is legal in 55 of 64 Louisiana parishes that approved the measure in the November 2020 general election. In-person and online sports betting is not permitted for residents living in the following parishes:
- Caldwell
- Catahoula
- Franklin
- Jackson
- LaSalle
- Sabine
- Union
- West Carroll
- Winn
