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Indiana Sports Betting

Nick Chappell Tue 11/12 5:36pm PT

Indiana has been long known as a sports hotbed in the United States, especially when it comes to basketball. Several of the game’s greats played there, such as Oscar Robertson, who was a high school star in Indianapolis and Larry Bird from French Lick, and of course Indiana University’s men’s college basketball team has been a big part of NCAA history. Meanwhile, the popular film Hoosiers brought to mainstream audiences the state’s storied tradition of high school hoops. 

Sports betting, however, is a relatively recent addition in Indiana, at least in its legal and regulated form. Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision allowing states other than Nevada to begin offering sports betting, Indiana’s lawmakers passed a law in 2019 to make it legal for sports fans to bet on their favorite games. 

Within less than a year more than a dozen retail sportsbooks opened in Indiana with several online sportsbooks likewise launching in the Hoosier State. The first bets were taken just before the start of the 2019 National Football League season, and within the first four months more than $435 million in sports wagers were placed in Indiana. The fact that Indiana got about a half-year head start on neighbor Illinois likely helped, especially around the Chicago area where sports bettors didn’t have far to travel to find an Indiana sportsbook.

Here’s a comprehensive overview of sports betting in the state of Indiana with everything you need to know about how it works and the many places where you can wager on your favorite sporting events.

Indiana Sports Betting Information

Residents of Indiana and indeed anyone just visiting the state can be on sports, as long as they are at least 21 years of age.

Indiana wasn’t among the very first states to begin offering sports betting following the May 2018 Supreme Court ruling, but once it did get involved it hit the ground running with a number of retail and online sportsbooks. 

As is the case in other states, those in Indiana can find sportsbooks at the state’s casinos and “racinos” (i.e., racetracks that offer casino-style games). Indiana also has sportsbooks at off-track betting parlors, as well as a number of online sportsbooks associated with those brick-and-mortar locations. 

Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis
Lucas Oil Stadium

When it comes to those online sportsbooks, you can register for an account at a retail sportsbook or also do so online. In fact you can even get an online account and move money to and from it when outside of Indiana, but you need to be located in Indiana in order to place a sports bet online.

Sports bettors have the same wide variety of options available to them in Indiana that you find in other states. There are the standard single-game wagers on point spreads, moneylines, and totals, as well as game and player props, various types of parlays and teaser bets, futures bets, as well as in-game or “live” betting. 

More on Sports Betting in Indiana

In Indiana you can bet on all sorts of collegiate and professional sports from around the world. That includes college teams located in the state like Indiana University, Notre Dame University, Purdue University and Butler University, and pro teams like the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, the NBA’s Indiana Pacers, and the WNBA’s Indiana Fever. Only esports and sports involving amateurs under the age of 18 are not available for betting. 

Indiana’s sports betting law allows the state’s licensed casinos also to apply for licenses to open sportsbooks. That means you’ll find sportsbooks at regular casinos as well as at racetracks with casino-style games. You’ll also find some sportsbooks at the racetracks’ associated off-track betting parlors. 

When it comes to online sports betting, each casino licensee can have up to three “skins” or partnerships with different online sportsbooks. In other words, while over a dozen sportsbooks are now live in the state, there is the potential for a lot more in Indiana.

There is a 9.5% tax rate on adjusted gross revenue from sports betting in Indiana, with part of the money going toward programs to help with problem gambling. 

Active Indiana Online Sportsbooks

DraftKings

Along with BetRivers, Daily fantasy sports giant DraftKings was first out of the gate to launch an online sportsbook in Indiana and has been well received ever since, earning the most action of any of the online sportsbooks in the early going. DFS players who are also sports bettors enjoy being able to link their daily fantasy and sportsbook accounts on DraftKings.

BetRivers

BetRivers launched its online sportsbook in Indiana on the same day as DraftKings to join them as the first on the virtual block. Previous success in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York positioned the Rush Street Interactive-powered platform also to do well in the Hoosier State.

FanDuel

FanDuel operates sportsbooks for both the Belterra Casino Resort in Florence and the Blue Chip Casino in Michigan City. Like DraftKings, FanDuel built up a popular brand on the daily fantasy side before opening its own sportsbooks, both retail and online, and has similarly become one of the leading names in that industry as well.

BetMGM

MGM partnered with European-based industry giant GVC Holdings to create Roar Digital, and as BetMGM now runs online sportsbooks in multiple states to good reviews.

Fanatics Sportsbook

After purchasing the company in 2023, Fanatics has been replacing PointsBet with its own Fanatics Sportsbook in all the states where PointsBet had been operating, including Indiana.

Unibet

Unibet, one of the world’s foremost online sports betting companies, has made its way to Indiana. It has gained access to the IN market through a licensing agreement with Caesars Entertainment and the Horseshoe Hammond Casino. While it operates on the Horseshoe’s license, it will not have a retail presence at the casino.

Caesars Sportsbook

With a well-liked in-house platform and a wealth of international experience, Caesars Sportsbook has already launched successful online sportsbooks in several U.S. states and is now servicing Indiana.

ESPN BET

PENN Entertainment’s situation is one of the more interesting ones at this time, as the company has announced a partnership with ESPN. ESPN BET is now available in Indiana and in all legal sports betting states!

ESPN BET is providing a $1,500 first bet reset welcome bonus for new users via the promo code SAOBONUS.

The most recognizable sports entertainment brand in the United States is one of the biggest moves we’ve seen in an era with sports betting legal.

Betway Sportsbook

Betway is one of the best known sportsbook brands in the world, and is in fact the most popular sportsbook in many countries worldwide. Its presence here in the States is more muted, but it has done fairly well in the states in which it operates, including Indiana. Betway benefits from its overseas presence by offering one of the widest varieties of sports in the industry, and its prices are usually among the best out there.

Bally Bet

Bally’s has made a splash in the sports betting world, bringing its Bally Bet online sportsbook to many states, including Indiana. Bally’s has also been on a buying spree, snapping up several casinos, including the Tropicana in Evansville, which is now Bally’s Evansville. Bally’s is a good sportsbook worth a space on your smartphone.

SBK Sportsbook

It was somewhat of a surprise when SBK launched in March 2022. Smarkets has always talked a big game about entering the United States market, but the Australian company hasn’t done much here so far. Its SBK product is solid, if unexceptional, similar to its presence in Indiana. Still, if you’re line shopping, SBK is worth checking out.

Hard Rock Sportsbook

Hard Rock launched its mobile app in Indiana in September 2022, just in time for the upcoming NFL season. It is a known brand in the state due to its large casino in Gary, but the mobile app is a welcomed addition to the competitive sports betting marketplace.

bet365

bet365 became the state’s 13th sportsbook when it launched in Indiana on January 30, 2024. This is great news for bettors in the state, most of whom will benefit from the sportsbook’s easy-to-use interface and wide variety of betting options.

Betr

The sportsbook side of Betr was granted access to launch in Indiana sometime in 2024.

General Summary of Betting Options

As noted, Indiana’s sports betting law permits a wide variety of options and markets for bettors looking to place wagers on collegiate (Division I only) and professional sports on contests played in America or internationally. There is no betting on esports allowed. Nor can you bet on sports involving amateur athletes less than 18 years of age in Indiana, meaning there’s no wagering on high school games.

You can bet on practically every sport there is at Indiana’s sportsbooks — in fact, the list of allowed sports is longer than what you find in most states. Sports on which you can bet in Indiana include:

Sportsbooks can also invite bettors to wager on events during the Summer and Winter Olympics. There are even provisions to allow betting on events such as the Academy Awards and major sports leagues’ drafts, as well as another allowing sportsbooks to apply to request the ability to accept wagers on events not currently covered.

All of the traditional sports betting options are also available to Indiana sports bettors.

Indiana sports bettors can also make different types of bets, from traditional single-game wagers to complicated parlays involving multiple contests. Betting types available at most Indiana sportsbooks include:

One small restriction worth noting — in-play proposition bets on college players are prohibited.

When visiting a sportsbook be sure to take some time and look around to see all of the different betting options available. Online sportsbooks in particular often have a lot more variety than the retail ones do, including odds boosts, alternate lines, and other fun off-the-beaten-path bet types, all of which you might overlook if you focus only on spreads, moneylines, and totals.

Banking Options for Indiana Online Sportsbooks

You’ll find that online sportsbooks in Indiana tend to offer the same banking options to users that are available in other states, with a few more ways to deposit than to withdraw. Options for depositing to your online sportsbook account include:

For withdrawing funds, these are the usual options:

When registering for an online sportsbook in Indiana, be sure to review all of the available methods for depositing and withdrawing funds. 

Available Platforms for Indiana Online Sportsbooks

Much like you’ll find in other states, Indiana online sportsbooks can be accessed in three primary ways:

When on a computer, you can get to all of the online sportsbooks in Indiana via your favorite web-based browser. Just do a Google search for the name of the sportsbook, and you’ll find a link to it. You can also find a link to the sportsbook on to the website of the partnering land-based casino or racetrack.

For mobile devices, if you use iOS you can either download the app from the Apple store or get it from the sportsbook’s website. Android users will need to go to the website to get their app, also easy to download. The online sportsbook apps generally function similarly to the web-based versions, which makes it easy to go back and forth if you happen to use both.

Benefits of Legal Mobile Sports Betting in Indiana

The online option proved popular during Indiana’s first few months of legal sports betting, quickly accounting for 65-70 percent of the overall sports betting action once the first online sportbooks opened in late 2019.

Betting on legal and regulated sites is always much better than doing so on offshore sportsbooks of dubious legality. All of the operators in Indiana must abide by the Indiana Gaming Commission’s regulations to provide sports betting in the state, and those regulations include consumer protections to help ensure fairness and security.

The verification process when signing up for an account at an Indiana online sportsbook helps the state know bettors meet the age requirement and that they are who they say they are while also contributes to added security for users. Meanwhile, the “geofence” system employed by the mobile operators ensures those who place bets are actually located in the state.

There are other benefits of using online sportsbooks in Indiana. Bettors can often find more games and markets online versus what is available in the retail sportsbooks, and that’s not even counting live or “in-play” wagers which are a hallmark of online betting. 

The online sportsbooks all offer easily accessed support as well, with live chat, phone, and email help often available 24-7. They also are required to include information and links for those in need of help with problem gambling, which is easy to find whether using web-based versions or mobile apps. 

Indiana Gambling History

Indiana State Flag
State of Indiana Flag

Like other states bordering the Mississippi River, Indiana had its share of ports where the gambling that happened on 19th-century steamboats would continue inland. But legal and regulated gambling in Indiana really didn’t emerge in earnest until much later. 

A bill legalizing pari-mutuel horse racing was passed in 1989 with the first racetracks and off-track betting parlors appearing soon after. At the same time the state lottery was introduced, returning to Indiana after being banned for over a century in the state. Then in 1993 Indiana joined the growing wave of states legalizing riverboat casinos, and over the next decade several opened on Lake Michigan and the Ohio River. 

In 2007 the state also passed legislation permitting the two racetracks begin offering slots, making them into “racinos” or pari-mutuel casinos. Then in 2015 the law was amended to let riverboat casinos move on land, and in 2018 the state’s first and so far only Native American casino opened, the Four Winds South Bend. Today there are eight riverboat casinos, three land-based casinos, two racinos, and one tribal casino operating in the state.

In the spring of 2019, Indiana lawmakers passed a bill allowing sports betting in the state’s casinos, race tracks, and off-track betting parlors. On September 1, 2019 the first bets were taken at the retail sportsbooks at the Ameristar Casino Hotel East Chicago and the Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg as well as at the Indiana Grand Racing & Casino, with other locations’ sportsbooks soon following suit. Then in October 2019 came the launch of online sports betting in the state.

FAQs

Is it legal to bet on sports in Indiana?

Yes. After lawmakers passed a sports betting bill, Governor Eric Holcomb signed it into law in May 2019. The law allows casinos and race tracks to offer sports betting, both in retail sportsbooks and online. 

Who oversees sports betting in Indiana?

The Indiana Gaming Commission regulates sports betting in the Hoosier State, both in retail locations and online. 

What is the legal age to bet on sports in Indiana?

As is the case in most other states, you must be at least 21 years of age to bet on sports in Indiana, whether you are doing so in person or online.

Is online/mobile sports betting legal in Indiana?

Yes. During debates over the new Indiana sports betting law, the online component of the bill was a matter of great contention, but ultimately it was included. Each of the casinos and racinos is allowed to contract with up to three brands to offer online sports wagering.

What casinos in Indiana offer retail sports betting?

Here is a list of all of the casinos and racinos where you can bet on sports in Indiana:

There are also three off-track betting parlors with retail sportsbooks. Here are those, with their associated racetracks in parentheses:

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