- In the coming weeks regulators will likely be approving the first Virginia online sports betting licenses.
- There are a maximum of 12 sports betting licenses that the State of Virginia can hand out.
- Sports betting companies like DraftKings, PointsBet, and FanDuel are expected to be among the first companies to be granted licenses.
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia will soon have their first taste of online sports betting options as the state’s lottery has given the green light to begin approving licenses in the next few weeks.
This move comes weeks before the biggest sports betting holiday of the year. The Super Bowl is set to take place on February 7th.
“If a licensee is ready to go, some of them could be up and running by the Super Bowl. That’s a good opportunity. It’s the biggest thing on the sports calendar all year, so we might be able to launch with a bang," Kevin Hall, Executive Director of the Virginia Lottery told 13News Now on Tuesday.
In July 2020, Virginia legislatures legalized sports betting and since then they’ve been working out the regulations with the Virginia Lottery to ensure a safe gambling platform for all Virginia residents.
There are only 12 licenses that the state of Virginia can approve and it's expected that some of the biggest names in the sports betting industry will vie for these spots. Sports gambling operators like DraftKings, PointsBet, and FanDuel are among the handful of companies looking to claim their stake in Virginia’s sports betting market.
However, with only 12 licenses and 25 applications turned in, the Virginia Lottery will have some tough decisions to make.
The revenue generated for the state by the launch of these online sports betting sites before the Super Bowl is expected to help the state make up for any money lost during the Covid-19 pandemic that has ravaged the US for over a year now.
One of the downfalls to sports betting in Virginia is that residents will not be able to live bet on their favorite college football teams in the state and to use any online betting sites Virginians will need to be at least 21 years of age.
Nonetheless, the rollout of USA online gambling in Virginia should be live and will allow residents to bet on the Super Bowl wherever they’re located in the state, safely and legally.