Ohio is Just Hours Away From Launch of Mobile Sports Betting

Ohioans are passionate sports fans with hometown pride … we’re thrilled to offer them a variety of ways to have more skin in the game ahead of the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship & the NFL playoffs. Nearly 20 mobile sportsbook apps are making final preparations to launch in Ohio on New Year’s Day.

The Buckeye State will become the 32nd in the US with regulated sports betting when the market launches on Sunday. It will also be the 23rd state with real money online sports betting in the US.

Ohio is projected to be a large state for sports betting. With a population of about 11.8 million, it is the seventh-largest state in terms of population. Ohio is also larger than three of its neighbors that already have sports betting — Indiana, Michigan, and West Virginia. Only neighboring Pennsylvania is a bigger market.

Sports bettors will also likely be drawn from neighboring Kentucky, which, despite a solid effort in 2022, has yet to launch mobile sports betting.

Operators will be eager to sign up new players, and we are sure to see a slew of enticing deposit and no deposit bonus offers be announced on Sunday. Some bookies have even gotten a headstart — sportsbooks like DraftKings Sportsbook Ohio and BetMGM Sportsbook Ohio have been promoting big sign-up deals and pre-registration bonuses ahead of launch day.

Operators Signing Up Customers

We’re excited to ring in the New Year with the launch of our top-rated DraftKings Sportsbook app in Ohio. Two of the more familiar mobile sportsbooks in the US — BetRivers and DraftKings Sports — released statements Friday discussing the upcoming launches. Both said they were actively signing up customers.

On launch day, DraftKings will feature a massive odds boost promo on Sunday’s Cleveland Browns game. New users just signing up for the sportsbook will also be able to take advantage of the DraftKing Sportsbook Ohio’s hot new Bet $5 Get $200 welcome bonus.

“We’re excited to ring in the New Year with the launch of our top-rated DraftKings Sportsbook app in Ohio,” said Matt Kalish, DraftKings Co-Founder and President of its North America division. DraftKings has a partnership with Hollywood Casino Toledo.

“Ohioans are passionate sports fans with hometown pride, and we’re thrilled to offer them a variety of ways to have more skin in the game ahead of the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship and the NFL playoffs.”

Rush Street Interactive (RSI), the parent company of BetRivers Sportsbook, also announced plans to go live on Sunday.

“We are really excited to offer Ohio’s nearly 12 million residents betting action on the upcoming college bowls and the NFL’s big game, and expect our BetRivers sportsbook to be very popular as bettors come to appreciate and trust our high-quality and innovative product that we are known for in other states,” said Richard Schwartz, CEO of RSI.

“In addition to football, BetRivers offers our customers endless entertainment with countless other sports and betting options available for their pleasure, including an exciting range of bets on NBA and NCAA basketball.”

BetMGM Sportsbook Ohio will also be among the opening day launches. The sportsbook has been running a special pre-registration no deposit bonus offer — and there’s still time to take advantage of it. All new players that open an account at BegMGM Sportsbook before Sunday’s big launch will receive $200 in betting funds. This is one of the most lucrative pre-registration bonuses currently available in the sports betting industry. All players must do is follow this link, fill in the boxes, and get ready for action.

While it’s unclear precisely which other mobile sportsbooks plan to launch on Sunday, the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) currently lists 20 operators as holding a valid mobile management services provider license.

Two operators — MaximBet and Prophet Exchange — have since withdrawn their applications for a mobile management services provider license. The former ceased operations in November. Meanwhile, a third operator, Fubo, submitted an application to the OCCC but shut down its sportsbook in October.

PlayUp and WynnBET have submitted applications, but they have not been given conditional approval from the regulator. PlayUp has an agreement with JACK Cleveland Casino, while WynnBET has a partnership with JACK Thistledown Racino.

How Ohio Set Up Sports Betting

Under HB 29, the gaming bill that Ohio lawmakers passed and which Governor Mike DeWine signed into law in December 2021, the OCCC is authorized to award 25 mobile sports betting (aka Type A) licenses. The regulator may also issue 40 retail (Type B) licenses.

The law requires a Type A licensed operator to also hold a license and operate a Type B facility. That means mobile Ohio sports betting apps are also required to open a retail sportsbook somewhere in the state.

OCCC can also issue an unspecified number of licenses (Type C) for self-service or clerk-operated lottery terminals. Such kiosks, owned and operated by a sports betting operator or the Ohio Lottery Commission (OLC), are planned for bars and restaurants throughout the state and will serve as lottery sports gaming terminals.

Mobile Sportsbooks Authorized to Launch in OH

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