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Sportsbooks in North Dakota

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Ever since 2018 brought a change in U.S. sports betting legislation, online sportsbooks have been thriving throughout the country. More and more states are giving the green light to gambling platforms, and an ever-increasing cohort of bettors is getting involved via gaming sites.

North Dakota, though, is yet to catch up with the trend. Although the state is happy to have bricks-and-mortar casinos on tribal land, there is little sign of any move to permit online betting. In 2019, legislation to allow sports betting in the state failed to clear the Senate. Then in 2020, two casinos announced plans to open retail sportsbooks. Thus far, however, the only sports betting available in ND is on horse racing at the North Dakota Horse Park.

Best online sportsbooks in ND

The online gambling marketplace is increasingly crowded and North Dakota is no exception. There are several leading sportsbooks online in the state, so it is not always easy for a rookie to pick out the most suitable. Here is a look at a few of the best ones.

BetMGM North Dakota

With a hint of Vegas glitz, BetMGM grew out of the MGM Casino group — this online gambling site likes to give a flavor of the strip to its offer. But don’t assume that this is all about casinos. The sportsbook section is extensive and highly competitive. You’ll be able to bet on all major events here, not just the big bouts in Las Vegas.

FanDuel North Dakota

Daily Fantasy Sports games played a huge role in persuading the Supreme Court to drop its ban on sports betting. It was one of the leaders in the DFS market and since 2018 it has evolved into a leading sportsbook operator as well. Anyone familiar with its fantasy offer will be right at home here, while the site is also easy to use and welcoming for newbies.

BetRivers North Dakota

How does a $500 sign-up bonus sound? Tempting? Well, step this way. The welcome offer is just one of the highlights at BetRivers, an online sportsbook that is quick to move into any new marketplace. Generous bonuses help to draw in players, but it’s the smooth, fully-featured apps that really cement BetRivers’ position as a market leader.

Caesars North Dakota

The loyalty program is the star attraction here. Win or lose, every bet you place will earn you loyalty points. Over time, these add up to attractive prizes. Players can simply withdraw their points as cash, or use them to boost the bet roll. In addition, a generous sign-up offer goes a long way to attracting new customers.

The steps to joining a sportsbook in North Dakota

Establishing an account at a sportsbook in North Dakota could not be easier. The registration process is quick and intuitive. Just follow the steps listed here, and you will be placing your bets in a matter of minutes.

  1. From our list of North Dakota sportsbooks, pick one that suits your needs. Our team is always busy keeping this site up to date. That means as soon as new platforms come online, or new offers appear for players, you can read about it right here. Meanwhile, our reviews ensure you will always understand exactly what you are signing up for before you open your account.
  2. Verify your identity and create an account. To set up your account, you will need to provide details of your ID. In many cases, this can be done using the last four digits of your SSN. Sometimes, however, customers might be asked to submit photographs of their ID and proof of address documents. This is to tackle fraud and protect players.
  3. If you have a bonus promo code, enter it. When players create a new account, welcome bonuses are often applied automatically. However, some sites use exclusive promo codes to trigger special offers for customers. Our list of ND sports betting sites will tell you about any code you might need.
  4. Choose a payment method that suits you best. A good sportsbook offers a wide choice of payment methods. You’ll almost certainly find you can deposit and withdraw funds using a system that is already familiar to you.
  5. You can start betting now. To place your first bet, find the game that interests you. Then just click on the odds that you want to back and type your stake into the bet slip that will appear. Click ‘confirm’, and you’re off. If only it was as simple as that to pick a winner.

Are online sportsbooks legal in North Dakota?

No, at the present time online sportsbooks are not legal in North Dakota. It remains to be seen how the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling against the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) might change this situation. PASPA was a piece of federal legislation that blocked sports betting throughout the USA. Since it was struck down, several states have moved to legalize wagers on sports, both online and at retail locations.

In North Dakota, a bill to legalize sports betting made it through the house in 2019, but could not clear the senate. Since then, two established tribal casinos announced plans to introduce sports betting at their venues in partnership with IGT. There are precedents from other states for existing casinos to move into sports betting without any explicit change of the law.

At the moment, however, there are only two ways for North Dakotans to get involved in any kind of sports betting. One is to play Daily Fantasy Sports games, which are fully legal in the state but fall short of a fully-fledged sports wagering experience. The other is to use offshore gambling platforms, which are not licensed and regulated by the authorities in North Dakota. The latter is something of a legal gray area, and players risk encountering problems if they need to resolve problems with a gaming platform licensed overseas.

Common payment methods you can find at ND sportsbooks

Today’s online betting services offer a wide range of different payment methods. Customers are sure to find something convenient for them to fund their accounts and withdraw their winnings. In addition to familiar debit and credit cards, North Dakota’s sportsbooks also accept several e-wallets and alternative payment systems. Let’s look at some of the most popular.

  1. VISA: Most sportsbooks accept the world’s most popular card system. That’s great for users who like the convenience of a familiar system, and it gives confidence that payments will always be secure. However, while it is often easy to deposit using VISA, there can be issues with withdrawals. In many cases, issuing banks will not accept funds from gambling sites. Therefore many betting platforms cannot process withdrawals to VISA cards, forcing customers to use an alternative way of collecting their winnings.
  2. Mastercard: It’s a similar story to Mastercard. These pieces of plastic are widely accepted all over the world. Again, many sportsbooks allow deposits from Mastercard accounts. However, there is often the same issue around withdrawals. Often, it is more convenient to use an alternative method.
  3. Venmo: Since PayPal took over Venmo in 2013, customers have been able to use their Venmo accounts with any merchant that accepts PayPal transactions. That includes online gambling platforms. However, it is not always obvious that Venmo is available. Often, players who want to fund their account using this handy mobile payment system need to look for it under PayPal when they access the sportsbook’s cashier department. That small detail aside, using Venmo with a sportsbook is just as easy as using it to split the bar tab with your buddies.
  4. Play+: For dedicated gambling, Play+ offers a dedicated payment system. The people behind this pre-paid card identified a gap in the market and decided to make it easier to fund accounts on betting sites. Play+ was the result. After opening an account, customers can load credit onto their card from their bank account, credit card or e-wallet. Then it’s a simple task to deposit those funds into a gambling account. Best of all, when you cash out your winnings, you can take your Play+ card to an ATM and withdraw your funds in dollar bills. Alternatively, you can use Play+ to pay at any merchant that accepts Discover cards.
  5. American Express: Amex is the oldest name in credit cards and arguably the best-known. However, veteran status is not helping American Express take the internet by storm. Although some sites will support payments using this card provider, they are relatively few. Amex levies higher than average transaction fees, which puts many potential partners off. Maybe it’s time this venerable company had another look at its pricing structure to adapt it for a 21st-century marketplace.

Everybody loves something for nothing, right? Sportsbooks like to give out bonuses to encourage new customers to sign up. Players like to get free bets to help boost their winnings or cushion their losses. Everyone’s a winner. Let’s take a look at some of the most common offers available on gambling websites and apps in North Dakota.

  • Sign up bonus: When attracting new customers is the aim, a sign up bonus is crucial. Many gamblers will not consider a new platform unless there is a welcome offer to make it worthwhile. Good offers should deliver a generous quantity of free bets. They should also keep any wagering requirements to an absolute minimum, and avoid any unpleasant little surprises in the fine print.
  • Matched deposit bonus: This often forms part of a sign up promo. The deal is simple. You deposit funds, and the sportsbook matches that with an equivalent sum in free bets. If you’re lucky, you may find you can get 150% or even 200% of your deposit. Sometimes, matched deposit bonuses form part of a VIP club or loyalty arrangement, although here you are more likely to see 50-75% of your deposit topped up as free bets.
  • No deposit bonus. This is rarely seen in sportsbooks but is popular in casinos. The reward goes to all new customers, even before they deposit funds in their accounts. Not surprisingly, the actual bonus is usually small: a handful of free spins on a slot, or maybe a couple of dollars free bet. Often, there is a big wagering requirement associated with the offer. Nevertheless, this can be a good way of trying out a new site without risking your own money.
  • Risk-free bets: These promos tend to coincide with specific events. For example, you might see ‘Bet up to $50 on the World Cup semi-final. If your bet loses, we’ll give you a free bet on the final’. Sometimes, risk-free bets form part of a welcome bonus. Then, usually, they are available on any market and the maximum potential free bet can be much higher. Risk-free bets can be a helpful part of a betting strategy but should be approached with caution. The free bet cannot be withdrawn as cash, so a player who loses with the free bet ends up down overall.
  • Free bets: The clue is in the name. A free bet allows you to stake on a market without wagering your own funds. ND online gambling sites offer them in various forms, some of which we discussed above. Cautious bettors use them to lock in small profits on select markets: in a two-outcome bet, you can use the free bet on the odds-against option and stake cash on the odds-on pick. This brings a guaranteed win regardless of the result. Others prefer to let them ride on long-odds multiples, hoping for a big payday. Whatever your strategy, be aware that free bet stakes are not returned with your winnings. In addition, you cannot withdraw free bet credits as cash.

Are there any indications on when sportsbooks will become legal in North Dakota?

It is now possible for any state in the USA to make sportsbooks legal. In 2018, the Supreme Court struck down PASPA, the act that blocked sports betting at a federal level. As a result of that ruling, individual states could introduce their own laws around wagers on sports.

In 2019, the North Dakota authorities considered a proposal that would legalize retail sports betting, with an emphasis on enabling the state’s tribal casinos to offer regulated and licensed sportsbooks. This bill cleared its first reading in the house but was halted by the senate.

Since then, there have been no further attempts to legalize sports betting in North Dakota. However, that does not mean that we will never see legal sportsbooks in the state. The local authorities have an interest in generating tax dollars via regulated and licensed gambling services. Therefore, there are good reasons for the legislature to take an interest in permitting online gambling. In addition, the leading betting companies are enthusiastic lobbyists for internet gaming. This creates two complementary forces that encourage many places to revisit the issue.

On that basis, it would be no surprise to see a further bid to allow gambling in North Dakota in the mid-term future. That said, it is also worth noting that ND does not currently generate much tax revenue from its gambling industry. Nor, historically, has the state taken much interest in encouraging and regulating betting in any form. It was one of the last states in the Union to operate a lottery. Moreover, according to current figures, North Dakota has one of the lowest spendings per capita on lottery tickets of any state in the USA. That may reflect a conservative approach to games of chance which does not allow the sale of scratch cards and restricts gamblers to a handful of multi-state draws. Elsewhere, lotteries thrive on the back of state-only draws and scratch card sales over the counter at convenience stores.

In addition, North Dakota’s gaming revenue is limited by the state’s reluctance to tax gambling organizations. The charitable gambling sector, which raises about $200 million a year, is taxed at just 1%, bringing in a mere $2 million to the state coffers. The tribal casinos are not taxed at all, and their licensing fees raise just a few hundred thousand dollars. To turn gambling into a significant revenue stream, the state will need to revise its tax laws as well.

Against that backdrop, it may be better to view the prospect of online gambling in North Dakota with cautious optimism, rather than boundless confidence.

FAQ

How many sportsbooks are there in ND?

At present, there are no ND betting apps or sportsbooks available. The state has yet to introduce any legislative framework to regulate gambling platforms, so the only sports betting options are offshore sites that operate outside of local laws.

Is it safe to play at North Dakota sportsbooks online?

When the North Dakota Gaming Division licenses and regulates online sportsbooks, it will be safe to use them. This is the same as the way the state regulates its land-based casinos and charitable gaming services. However, offshore platforms pose a risk because they are not subject to local legislation. Thus, players have no legal support if anything goes wrong.

How old do I need to be to place a bet at a ND sportsbook?

The minimum age for gambling in North Dakota is 21. That's the age limit at the state's casinos and the North Dakota Horse Park racetrack. Lottery tickets are available from age 18.