North Carolina Governor Signs Sports Betting Bill, Mobile Wagering To Launch Next Year

With North Carolina online sports betting now signed into law, the question is whether legal online betting sites will be allowed in time for the 2024 Super Bowl in February. 

The bill that Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, signed on Wednesday requires mobile wagering to begin at least by June 14, 2024. Wagering could start as early as Jan. 8.

A start date earlier than next June would give North Carolina online bettors a chance to wager legally on several major sporting events during the first six months of next year.

Super Bowl Among Big Events In Early 2024

In addition to auto racing and golf events next winter and spring, the start of the Major League Baseball season and the beginning of the NBA and NHL playoffs get underway prior to next summer. 

Here are some other key sporting events that take place during the January-June 2024 timeframe:

• Jan. 8: College Football Playoff National Championship, NRG Stadium, Houston
• Feb. 11: Super Bowl, Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
• March 19-April 8: March Madness, with the NCAA championship game played at State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

January Start Date ‘Too Soon,’ Lawmaker Says

As soon as any governor signs off on legal sports wagering, state officials feel pressure from bettors wanting to get things up and running quickly. The most intense pressure comes from bettors hoping they can begin wagering legally on upcoming major sporting events such as the Super Bowl. 

The Super Bowl traditionally is the most heavily wagered event in the U.S.

However, gaming regulators in every state need time to establish sports betting rules and regulations and to investigate and approve sports betting companies. That process can take at least several months.

In North Carolina, state Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, who opposed the sports betting bill, House Bill 347, told WRAL-TV a potential Jan. 8, 2024, start date is “too soon.”

“That's a little bit more than six months away to set up a gambling regulatory structure in the state,” he said.

Van Denton, communications director for the North Carolina Education Lottery Commission, told the TV news station the commission is “going to work as fast as we can to get it up and running.”

The nine-member Lottery Commission's next meeting, which is expected to include a discussion regarding mobile sports betting, is set for June 21 at 10 a.m. ET in Raleigh.

Mobile Wagering Popular Across U.S.

North Carolina betting apps are expected to be popular in the nation’s ninth most populous state, with about 10.7 million residents. The state has a strong collegiate basketball tradition and teams in the NFL, NBA and NHL.  

At the start date, bettors age 21 and older will be allowed to wager on professional and collegiate sports, in addition to auto racing and other events. Up to 12 mobile sportsbooks can be authorized, allowing bettors to use their smartphones and computers to wager from anywhere in North Carolina.

Though mobile wagering has been illegal in North Carolina, sports betting is already legal in person at three tribal casinos in the state. 

The new law extends in-person betting to eight additional sites. 

Those sites are PNC Arena in Raleigh, WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, Bank of America Stadium and Spectrum Center in Charlotte, Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Wilkesboro Speedway, Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro and Quail Hollow Country Club in Charlotte.

In states that allow mobile and in-person sports betting, mobile wagering generates more action by far. The same is expected to be the case in North Carolina.