Michigan stands out for being one of the most vibrant sports betting markets in the United States. The state legalized the activity and shortly after, various Michigan sportsbook venues began accepting in-person bets from the residents. The Michigan sports betting culture has always been rather robust and it was not too surprising to see the retail sports betting business grow as rapidly as it did.
Today, there are three major retail sports betting venues in Michigan. The casinos which are all located in Detroit include Motor City Casino, MGM Grand, and Greektown Casino.
Is Sports Betting Legal in Michigan?
Yes, Michigan is one of the states in the country that boasts of having a legal and regulated sports betting sector. This was all thanks to the Lawful Sports Betting Act that the state’s lawmakers discussed for quite a while before it was signed into law by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in December.
Michigan Online Sports Betting
When Michigan passed the Lawful Sports Betting Act, some of the other things aside from legal in-person sports betting that came into place were Michigan online betting and mobile sports betting. These two options finally went live in January bringing the long wait for even more sports betting options to an end.
Is Online Betting Legal in Michigan?
As it stands, Michigan allows operators to offer online sports betting (Michigan-only), online casino games as well as poker sites to the state’s residents. Prior to this, to access online betting, Michigan residents had to utilize offshore sportsbooks to experience Michigan sports betting online as those platforms were technically acceptable as there are no state laws that prohibited their use.
Online Sportsbook: Michigan Choices
Lots of people had been anticipating the arrival of Michigan sports betting online and, as expected, several operators were also making the necessary preparations to venture into the nascent but very lucrative market of online betting in Michigan.
As it turns out for sports betting online, Michigan is proving to be one of the fastest-growing states to adopt it. As for general sports gambling, Michigan’s legal betting markets are growing just as fast.
Michigan Sports Betting App Choices
As mentioned above, lots of stakeholders had their sights set on Michigan’s sports betting market. That said, as soon as the soon gave the green light for operators in the state to offer online wagering, several popular brands jumped at the opportunity to make the most out of Michigan mobile sports betting. Now, the state boasts of having one of the most impressive selections of mobile sports betting Michigan residents can dream of choosing from.
Michigan Sports Teams
Sports is a pretty big part of Michigan’s culture – no wonder sports betting is such a big deal. The state has several teams that play across both professional and collegiate sports leagues. To make it even better, unlike the case in other states, there are no restrictions when it comes to the teams you can bet on in Michigan.
Michigan Sports Betting Law and Regulations
Sports betting in the state is overseen by the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) which is responsible for not only regulation but also ensuring compliance. According to state gaming laws, online sportsbooks that wish to operate in Michigan have to be tethered to any of the existing three commercial casinos or any of the 12 federally recognized Indian tribes that currently own and operate a total of 23 casinos.
The online sportsbooks are also only allowed to take bets from residents or visitors who are at least 21 years old. These bettors also have to be within the state’s borders to access the state-sanctioned online sportsbooks – a geo-location feature is required for this.
The Michigan Sports Betting Bill
The Lawful Sports Betting Act was the bill that officially brought sports betting to Michigan. By the time it was passed, the bill had already been through several failed attempts at changing the Michigan sports betting law scene. Thankfully, after some negotiations in the Senate as well as a few tweaks, the bill was finally able to pass with a landslide win of 35-3. In addition to legalizing both in-person and online sports betting, the Lawful Sports Betting Act also legalized online casinos, online poker, and Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS).