Ohio sports betting: Which states are next in line to take wagers?

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We’re less than three weeks away from the highly anticipated launch of Ohio sports betting, which is set to commence when the clock strikes midnight on Jan. 1, 2023.
When the calendar flips, Ohio will become the 32nd state (plus Washington, D.C.) to launch fully legalized sports betting since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal law that banned such activity in May 2018. More than a dozen sports betting operators – including BetMGM, Caesars, and FanDuel – are scheduled to start taking wagers in the nation’s seventh-largest state in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
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Ohio’s launch comes on the heels of Maryland rolling out sports wagering in recent weeks and ahead of what’s expected to be a busy year for gambling legislation in 2023. So, who’s next in line to join the betting party?
Here’s a look at a few other states that have already legalized sports betting and when they might start taking wagers:
Massachusetts
While Ohio sports betting draws most of the headlines heading into the new year, Massachusetts is slated to join the fray sometime in 2023 after legalizing sports betting in August.
It’s been a messy stretch since then for Massachusetts sports betting, with questions about its approval process and timeline complicating the pending launch. As of now, retail sportsbooks in casinos are expected to start taking wagers in January, while online sports betting will follow suit in March.
Bettors in Massachusetts won’t be able to wager on their favorite in-state schools, though they’ll have plenty of options in a thriving horse-racing scene.
Nebraska
Much like in Massachusetts, sports betting was endorsed by Nebraska voters in 2020 and signed into law in mid-2021, though the Cornhusker State has been much slower to roll out legalized sports gambling than other states.
In fact, even with Legislative Bill 561 on the books for 18 months now, Nebraska is still months or even years away from taking wagers. That’s because the state has been focused on establishing the infrastructure for casino gambling – which was also legalized by LB 561 – before launching sports betting, which will only be legal in-person at Nebraska’s casinos.
The Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission approved rules to govern sports betting on Oct. 21, and the official launch of Nebraska sports betting is expected sometime in mid-to-late 2023 at the earliest.
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Maine
Maine became the first state to legalize sports betting in 2022 when Gov. Janet Mills signed Legislative Bill 585 into law in May. And while the process from legislation to law was fairly quick, the official launch of Maine sports betting could drag on.
That’s because the state still lacks a firm timeline on when sports betting will be available to its nearly 1.5 million residents, who will eventually be able to bet in-person at retail sportsbooks while tribal casinos own exclusive rights to online and mobile betting.
The protracted battle between state legislators and local tribes nearly killed the bill in the first place and will likely signal a lengthy rollout that could stretch into 2024.