Is Online Gambling Legal in Ohio?

Ohio has experienced great progress since residents approved land-based casinos and racinos a decade ago, offering four full-fledged casino locations and seven racinos that offer pari-mutuel betting alongside slots and table games. Furthermore, numerous lottery outlets such as traditional lotteries, Powerball, Keno and bingo exist across its borders.

Ohio state law does not recognize online poker as a form of gambling; therefore it cannot be played for real money online in Ohio. Thankfully, however, Ohio has legalized land-based poker rooms at four of its casino locales as well as several racinos offering video lottery terminals (VLT) similar to slot machines for play.

Ohio residents can also legally gamble online through sportsbooks and self-exclusion programs, which offer odds on various sporting events. Ohio also provides residents with a self-exclusion program which enables them to sign up for periods in which they won’t be allowed to gamble at casinos or gambling locations within their state.

Note, however, that even with these online betting sites available in Ohio, residents cannot place bets directly at home due to PAPSA being overturned by the Supreme Court and opened up sports gambling to states where it is legal.

Ohio does not currently regulate any online casinos; therefore, players from this state cannot play them for real money until legislation changes. While Ohio offers plenty of gambling sites that accept players, no regulated casino currently operates within state lines. That doesn’t mean there are none reputable ones; simply that legislation needs to change before real-money play can occur there.

Ohio legislation must pass in order to create a regulated online casino, with gaming commission duties including licensing, regulation, investigation, and jurisdiction over those operating casino-style games of chance. Please keep in mind that this process could take time before an online casino starts accepting bets from Ohio residents.

Ohio may lack regulated online casinos at present, yet that could change in the near future. Legislators could amend current laws to accommodate online gambling; however this would likely prove challenging given how few regulated casinos there currently are in Ohio. A potential solution might involve adding legislation directly to ballots – this was how online poker first legalized in Ohio. Whatever path is taken forward however, its future appears promising with PAPSA having recently been struck down and potentially seeing an explosion of the industry within our borders.