Louisiana online sports betting debuts Friday; BetMGM and Caesars confirmed

The Louisiana Gaming Control Board announced Wednesday that some of the state-licensed sites and apps will begin accepting mobile wagers, starting Friday at 8 a.m. Caesars Sportsbook and BetMGM both confirmed they will be ready that day, while WynnBET has already launched pre-registration.

Chairman Ronnie Johns made the announcement in a brief written statement. However, he did not specify which companies or apps would be among the first to start taking bets on Friday. 

“Currently eligible sports wagering operators will be approved to accept mobile bets as early as 8 a.mFriday morning. The remaining mobile sports wagering operators are in the process of meeting statutory and regulatory requirements, and will be approved one those requirements are met”, he stated. 

LGCB Chairman Ronnie Johns.

Retail sports betting launched in Louisiana casinos on October 31 with former Saints quarterback Bobby Hebert’s first state-regulated legal sports bet at the Caesars Sportsbook inside Harrah’s New Orleans Casino. 

Caesars Sportsbook featuring betting kiosks at Harrah's New Orleans Casino.

Among the operators who have been waiting to take sports wagers on mobile platforms are DraftKings, Caesars Sportsbook, FanDuel, BetMGM, Betfred and WynnBET. 

BetMGM announced Wednesday it has been approved to start taking online wagers through a statement that read: “We’re proud that BetMGM will be in the first wave of operators to launch mobile sports betting in Louisiana this fFriday. We thank both the Louisiana Gaming Control Board and the Louisiana State Police, and look forward to parlaying BetMGM’s success in neighboring regions into a long successful and responsible relationship with sports fans in the state”, CEO Adam Greenblatt wrote. 

Caesars has been rolling out pre-opening advertising for over a month. “Caesars Sportsbook is ready for mobile sports betting’s debut in Louisiana on Friday," Eric Hession, co-president of Caesars Digital, said in a statement. "This is an opportunity we’ve been working toward for a long time. We have a proud history of operating in Louisiana with our properties Harrah’s New Orleans, Horseshoe Bossier City, and the soon to re-open Horseshoe Lake Charles."

WynnBET also announced on Wednesday that account pre-registration and deposit is now available in their app for Louisiana bettors, and promoted its state-exclusive pre-registration offer, “Bet $10, Win $250”. Whether it will be one of the companies greenlit to take wagers as from Friday has not yet been communicated. 

The board has signed 13 retail sports betting licenses with seven more applications awaiting approval. The Louisiana Lottery will be involved in regulating the mobile sites approved for operation in the state. 

It was recently reported that retail sportsbooks in the state handled $39.5 million in wagers in December 2021, generating an estimated $4.3 million in revenue for the casinos. With mobile applications approved for use before the Super Bowl, some analysts project online wagering will generate $2.5 billion in bets and more than $200 million in operator revenue annually.