West Virginia was the fifth state in the country to legalize sports betting following the ending of the federal ban in May 2018. It was in August 2018 that West Virginia opened its first sportsbook, with Nevada, Mississippi, Delaware and New Jersey also having legal sports betting at the time. Sports betting now available at Mardi Gras Casino & Resort. Time to get in the game and bet on sports. The Betly Sportsbook at Mardi Gras Casino & Resort is the easiest, fastest, most fun way to watch, wager and win! Placing a bet has never been easier. West Virginia Sports Betting West Virginia was one of the first U.S. States to legalize sports betting, officially passing Senate Bill 415 in March 2018. Under this law, each of the state’s five casino and racetrack venues were allowed to pursue both retail and online sports betting options. In March 2018, West Virginia passed a law to make sports betting legal (Senate Bill 415). West Virginia had five venues in place — including both commercial casinos and racetracks — and all were open for business by the end of 2018. Best Sportsbooks in West Virginia 1. Dec 17, 2020 West Virginia is one of the most liberal states when it comes to online gambling, having legalized daily fantasy sports activities in 2016 and sports betting as soon as the PAPSA regulation was overturned in 2018. The state will next work towards allowing online casino gambling, though a recent bill which was introduced in 2017, ultimately failed.
There are indeed legal sports betting opportunities in West Virginia, if you know the right destinations at which to place your bets. The Federal Wire Act of 1961 and the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act combine to effectively ban online and offline sports betting in the United States. The only exceptions are the four states that are exempt from PASPA, meaning they can offer brick and mortar bookmaking services to their residents and visitors. These states include Delaware, Montana, Nevada and Oregon. These federal laws ensure that there are no state licensed bookmaking services in the state of West Virginia. There are no state laws addressing sports betting or online gambling in West Virginia.
The US federal laws governing sports betting in the US do not prohibit US residents from enjoying betting opportunities from legally licensed and regulated sportsbooks located offshore. These legal destinations are not subject to, nor do they violate any US federal laws or WV state law. Therefore you can bet on your favorite teams and sports without worrying about breaking the law. Both federal and state law do prohibit players from participating in unlicensed and unregulated gambling operations. This means it is critical that you only visit and bet at gambling sites that are legitimately licensed and subject to regulatory oversight. The brands recommended in this guide qualify as legal sportsbooks gambling sites. You can review the state gambling laws yourself by visiting the West Virginia state legislature website.
What is the Legal Gambling Age in West Virginia?
The legal gambling age in West Virginia is 21 years of age. This includes the minimum legal age for betting on sports online. Anyone who attempts to place bets prior to their 21st birthday is doing so in direct violation of the law. Among other penalties, those caught engaging in underage gambling will loose their winnings and any other funds associated with their gambling session. We strongly urge you not to consider this course of action. It is not worth the consequences.
What Types of Betting Lines Will I Find at Legal West Virginia Sportsbooks?
Sports Betting Casino
While we cannot speak for all sportsbooks, the brands represented in this guide all offers a tremendous selection of sports events covered in their betting lines. This includes lines on football, baseball, basketball, tennis, golf, hockey, soccer, NASCAR and other motor sports, boxing, Olympic events, and other mainstream sports categories. You will also find lines covering those categories that are not as mainstream, including cricket, rugby, cycling, swimming, and boating, among others. Professional, collegiate, and European leagues are included, so you'll have lines covering NFL, NCAA, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, as well as leagues from Europe and other countries. Many of our featured brands also offer lines on non-sports related events that include celebrity gossip, reality competitive TV shows, current events, and politics. By doing this they often attract gamblers who enjoy betting but are not strong sports fans. You will also notice that many of our recommended brands also offer other gambling venues, such as casino gambling, horse betting and poker.
Online Sports Betting West Virginia
The Marshall Thundering Herd
Most people who know of Marshall outside of the state of West Virginia typically know them for two reasons. Number one, they made a movie about them recently, 'We Are Marshall,' which was the story of how the team kept going even though the entire team and staff died tragically in a plane crash. Secondly, people know them for the combination of Chad Pennington and Randy Moss that wreaked havoc on the collegiate world for a couple of great years in the late '90s. In recent years, however, Marshall hasn't had much going for it. Will things ultimately turn around for the embattled program?
Marshall actually did better than expected last year, and that's primarily because they play outside of teams that you're going to find in top-25 bowl contention. They play in C-USA, alongside teams like Alabama Birmingham, Louisiana Tech, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, and Old Dominion, to name a few. Even still, the betting structure is still the same, and gamblers still win and/or lose real money on the team.
Last year, the Thundering Herd were actually 9-5 ATS (against the spread), 2-0 after a bye, and 4-1 in non-conference games. As the away favorites, they were 4-2, and one of their worst categories was in-conference games, where they went 5-4. They're a better team this year, though they're currently 1-1 on the record and ATS. But we do expect a solid Marshall performance, with a 10-4 ATS record in all games.
The West Virginia Mountaineers
The Mountaineers of West Virginia were way down on the list last year in terms of NCAA rankings, at roughly #67. Part of this was because they lost their top QB Geno Smith to the Jets in the NFL draft, and another part was that they play in a very tough conference. Unlike Marshall, the Mountaineers play in a legit power-five conference, the Big 12, with teams like Baylor, TCU, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech. Now, the Big 12 isn't like the SEC or anything, but it's certainly a far cry from C-USA.
In all their games last year, the Mountaineers managed to go 7-6 ATS, and actually really surprised people as underdogs by going 4-1. This meant that they were a competitive team that didn't get blown out often. And they did this primarily outside of their conference, as teams like Baylor and TCU simply put up too many points to sustain a cover.
West Virginia Sports Betting Casinos Michigan
The Big 12 has actually stepped up this year instead of down, so we don't expect great things for West Virginia. Look for a year where they might improve on their ATS to the tune of 8-5, but don't expect much more than that. They're an iffy bet, at very best, and anyone betting on them might want to look elsewhere in the Big 12, e.g. TCU or Baylor.
West Virginia Sports Betting Casinos In Texas
SPORTS BETTING IN WEST VIRGINIA
Sports betting is only growing in popularity around the world. With more states starting to legalize sports betting, though, you may be asking what the status is for your individual state. So it is time to find out more about what you can do in the WV sports betting scene to see what is available for you to use and know if you can legally bet and where you are able to legally bet on sports.
Casinos
Some of the places that you may start to look at first is a casino that has a sports book. This is going to make it easier for you to place your bets and know you can collect your winnings right away. At the same time this is a great way to get out of your home and enjoy sports in an afternoon out as well. Now, the important thing is to check to make sure the casino has a sports book before you go. One casino that at the time of this writing was accepting sports bets was Hollywood Casino at Charles Town.
Online
With the online world you will find plenty of websites on the market that allow for sports betting. Some of those sites are very legitimate like Fan Duel and DraftKings. However, other sites are not so stable and when you go to withdraw your funds may require a large sum of money to be withdrawn at the same time for them to get the money out. For example, one online sportsbook requires a 500 dollar minimum to withdraw your funds. Granted, this is nice as it helps to pay a bill quickly, but it can take quite a bit of time to get the funds into your account.
Person To Person
This is a type of sports betting that has been around since the advent of sports. That is the simple one of going up to your buddy and putting a friendly wager on the game. Sometimes these wagers are for fun, but other times they are considered real bets. So the person to person bet is a good bet if you and the person you are wagering against is good for the money.
Betting on sports is only growing and with the legalization of sports betting in America outside of Las Vegas it is only a matter of time before it spreads to all 50 states. With West Virginia they do allow sports betting and that will definitely make it easier for you to place your bet on your favorite sports team be it the Mountaineers or the Thundering Herd, it is now the time to enjoy your hometown teams and make some money at the same time.
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