The Louisiana Gaming Control Board has issued temporary mobile sports betting licenses and Louisiana Sportsbook will launch its online platforms at 8:00 AM Central on Friday, January 28th. Bettors across Louisiana have been wagering at brick-and-mortar gaming facilities for a few months now.
The move to mobile should be prosperous, as other states have seen considerable growth through online sports betting markets. Louisiana sportsbook expects to follow suit.
“Geaux Time” for Louisiana mobile app launch
Louisiana Gaming Control Board Chair Ronnie Johns was delighted to have mobile sports betting up and running by February 13th in time for the Super Bowl. Launching on Friday is earlier than most expected, but it is certainly a good time for the market.
“It’s been a long time coming, but I’m very proud of how we’ve done it,” Johns said. “So many people think you can just flip a switch and turn on mobile sports betting. It’s very difficult. There’s a lot of compliance issues, a lot of regulatory issues, a lot of technology issues.”
“Everything’s been tested, many, many times. We feel like we’re in good shape and we’re excited about it. We think it’s going to be a huge weekend for sports betting.”
LSU fans are quite familiar with two players that helped their school capture a National Championship in 2019. Ja’Marr Chase and Joe Burrow both play for the Cincinnati Bengals. Those two will face former LSU teammate Clyde Edwards-Helaire of the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
The Pelican State is the first state to ask different parishes if they wanted legalized sports betting or any other form of gaming. In all, 55 of the 64 parishes agreed to offer sports betting to their residents. Some of the locations that approved sports betting are New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and Lafayette.
The nine parishes without sports betting are Caldwell, Catahoula, Franklin, Jackson, LaSalle, Sabine, Union, West Carroll, and Winn. Bettors in these jurisdictions can create accounts, deposit, and withdraw, but will need to travel to place sports wagers.
Currently, each of the state’s 20 licenses can have up to two online skins. Gaming facilities and live horse race-tracks will have preference.
First Louisiana Sports Betting operators to get approved
Johns has been pretty straightforward as to which mobile sports betting platforms he would approve. BetMGM was the first to confirm it’s position and Caesars Sportsbook was next. Caesars was also the first sportsbook to launch in Louisiana with a retail license.
Showing an aggressive approach, Johns clearly wants to sign and approve as many licenses as possible. This would allow the sports betting market to continue to grow at an exponential rate. Barstool Sportsbook is another operator that will be among the first ones to launch. DraftKings and FanDuel also confirmed that they will launch on Friday.
Additionally, BetRivers, Golden Nugget, TwinSpires, PointsBet, and WynnBet will have access to Louisiana’s online sports betting markets. WynnBet has opened up pre-registration for bettors to use their platform once its launch takes place. The company gained access to the market through a deal with Caesars in 2021, specifically with the Horseshoe Bossier City Hotel & Casino.
Similarly, the Louisiana Lottery Corp can also take wagers through mobile and retail kiosks. The corporation is in the midst of an RFI process to find a vendor. The deadline to be notified is February 15th.
Retail Sportsbooks in Louisiana finished 2021 strong as 11 retail sportsbooks brought in $39.5 million in December. Operators generated $4.38 million in revenue thanks to an 11.1 percent hold. The sports betting handle in December increased 43.1 percent from November, which brought in $27.6 million.