Is Online Gambling Legal in Louisiana?

What Gambling Is Legal in Louisiana

Sports Betting in Louisiana: Legal in 55 Parishes

Is sports betting legal in Louisiana? Yes, in most of it. Voters approved it parish by parish in November 2020. Fifty-five of 64 said yes. Acts 440 and 443 followed in 2021. 

Retail sportsbooks opened that October. What’s more, mobile betting launched statewide on January 28, 2022.

Daily Fantasy Sports in Louisiana: Legal in 47 Parishes

This runs on its own separate map, and it's actually two years older than sports betting. Act 322 of 2018 put DFS to a parish vote that November. 

47 of 64 approved it. House Bill 64 then set the real framework in 2020, along with an 8% tax on contest revenue. A parish can allow fantasy and reject sports betting, or the reverse. They're truly independent decisions.

Online Casino in Louisiana: Not Legal

Casinos are flat-out banned statewide, and there are no parish exceptions here. Louisiana Revised Statutes 14:90.3 makes online casino games illegal. 

Search Louisiana online casinos, and you'll find plenty of offshore sites claiming otherwise. None of them are really licensed here.

Sweepstakes Casinos in Louisiana: Banned as Racketeering

This one can seem quite unusual, as Louisiana is the only state that's gone this far. Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a formal opinion back in July 2025. It declared dual-currency sweepstakes platforms illegal gambling under existing state law. 

Governor Jeff Landry then signed two companion bills. House Bill 53 came first and was signed May 11, 2026. House Bill 883 followed on May 15. HB 53 folds sweepstakes gambling into Louisiana's racketeering statute. And so penalties can run up to 50 years in prison and a $1 million fine. HB 883 targets the platforms themselves directly. Fines there go up to $40,000, with up to 5 years per violation. Also, each wager counts as its own separate offense.

Prediction Markets: Federal, Not State

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversees these markets federally. 

It treats them as event-contract exchanges. Louisiana law doesn't reach into this category at all.

The Legal Gambling Age in Louisiana

21 is the minimum age across the board here. That covers sports betting, fantasy contests, and casino gaming alike. 

It also includes the Louisiana Lottery, which is unusual. Most states set that one at 18.

Who Regulates Gambling in Louisiana

The Louisiana Gaming Control Board

One board handles both live verticals. The Louisiana Gaming Control Board sits inside the Department of Public Safety. It licenses casinos, sports wagering, and fantasy sports contests. 

The Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division backs it up on enforcement. That's a big part of why Louisiana moves faster than most states against unlicensed operators. Prediction markets are not part of the state's laws, and are regulated by the CFTC.

How to File a Complaint

Check the Board's own published licensee list first. 

That's the fastest way to verify any site is actually legal before you use it.

Where to Get Help in Louisiana

You can always call or text 1-877-770-STOP for responsible gambling info or to get help from professionals. It's a free, confidential line run through the Louisiana Association on Compulsive Gambling.

Where You Can Bet in Louisiana

Licensed Sportsbooks in Louisiana

These online sportsbooks currently hold a license: bet365, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, FanDuel, DraftKings, theScore Bet, Fanatics Sportsbook, and BetRivers.  The actual ceiling is much higher, though. 20 licensed casinos can each run up to two mobile skins. The state lottery gets one more on top of that. So that puts the theoretical max at 41 mobile brands total, and the market is nowhere near that yet.

The Nine Parishes That Said No

These nine voted against sportsbooks back in 2020: 

• Caldwell, 
• Catahoula, 
• Franklin, 
• Jackson, 
• La Salle, 
• Sabine, 
• Union, 
• West Carroll, and 
• Winn. 

Betting is geofenced. You have to be physically inside an approved parish to place a wager at sportsbooks. Note that there are no exceptions there.

Licensed Fantasy Sports Operators

Only DraftKings and FanDuel actually hold a Louisiana fantasy sports license. Contests built around high school or youth sports aren't allowed.  Someone in one of the 17 no-vote fantasy parishes can still register and deposit. They'd just need to physically be in an approved parish to enter a paid contest.

What Is Not Available

No licensed online casino exists in Louisiana. No online poker does either, and as of August 1, 2026, sweepstakes casinos joined that list too.  Free-to-play social casinos remain legal, though, since they never fell under the state's gambling definition in the first place.

Prediction markets such as Kalshi are designated by the CFTC. Keep track of the live operators in the state with our prediction markets tracker.

Tax on Gambling Winnings in Louisiana

Louisiana State Tax on Winnings

Louisiana taxes gambling and contest winnings as ordinary income. The flat rate is 3%.  That's been true since January 1, 2025, when a reform replaced the old three-bracket system. The previous top rate was 4.25%.

What You Still Owe Federally

Keep this separate from what operators themselves pay. Online sports betting revenue is taxed at 21.5%, while fantasy contest revenue is taxed at 8%.  You should know that both charges land on the operator, and not on you. Federal tax still applies on top of your 3% state rate regardless. Moreover, operators issue a W-2G once your payout crosses the federal reporting threshold.

General information only; not tax advice.

Pending Louisiana Gambling Legislation

The Sweepstakes Ban: HB 883 and HB 53

As covered above, this is now enacted law, not a proposal. Landry vetoed an earlier sweepstakes bill back in 2025. He called it "a solution in search of a problem" at the time.  That didn't stop the state from acting anyway. The Gaming Control Board and AG Murrill sent cease-and-desist notices to nearly 40 sweepstakes operators after that veto. This happened well before HB 53 and HB 883 made the ban official this year.

Parishes Could Vote Again

A separate 2026 bill would let any parish call a new election. That vote would cover a form of gambling the parish previously rejected.  This includes sports betting, riverboat casinos, horse racing, and video poker. Daily fantasy sports is specifically excluded from this option, though.

Online Casino: No Bill

We see nothing moving here at all. No iGaming bill has advanced.  As a matter of fact, legalization isn't considered realistic before 2027 at the earliest.

Frequently asked questions

Related states