Andrew O'Malley 13. December 2019 | UPDATED ON: 19. December 2022 For Indiana residents, there are now online sportsbooks on offer to cater for the passion these people have for sports. Pro sports have always been very popular in the region and now people in Indiana can put their sports knowledge to the test. Is Online Sports Betting in Indiana Legal? Yes! After the passage of House Bill 1015 in May 2019, sports betting became legal in Indiana. This was for both retail and online sportsbooks. It did not take long for the first sportsbooks to open, doing so in September 2019. A number of retail operations opened during the month, with more gradually adding offerings in the subsequent weeks. The first of the online sportsbooks licensed by the Indiana Gaming Commission went online on October 3. There is a total of eight mobile sportsbooks licenses available in the state. The performance figures to date have been promising, particularly due to the proximity to big population hubs in nearby Illinois, such as the city of Chicago. Some of the best brands in the US sports betting space now have open platforms in Indiana. To legally place sports bets in the state, you do need to be at least 21 years old, but thankfully there is no in-person registration needed, unlike in other states when signing up for an online sports betting account. All online operators need to partner up with one of the land-based facilities in order to launch a platform. The Indiana Gaming Commission is in charge of overseeing the sector and a 9.5% tax is levied on the gross gaming revenue of the sector. This guide helps you to navigate through the various options for placing legal sports bets in Indiana. Note: The staggered launch of online sports betting was able to allow sportsbooks to iron out any potential kinks. Online sports betting is much more convenient, as well as giving you access to promotions and loyalty offers. How are Indiana Online Sportsbooks Ranked? As there are up to eight online sports betting licenses available in Indiana, this means that there is going to be a lot of competition among the various offerings. This is why platforms have to do their best to try and stand out from the crowd. This can be done in a variety of ways, each of which will be analyzed in this guide. Some of the key areas that are looked at include: Number of sports and markets on offer Extent of the live betting offering Competitiveness of the odds Level of welcome bonus and regular promotions Ease of use for the platform Variety of payment methods Security of the site Quality of the mobile offering The Best Indiana Online Sportsbooks Legal in 2024: DraftKings Sportsbook - Focuses on performance over aesthetics The DraftKings online sportsbook launched in Indiana on October 3 and quickly set about establishing itself in the state. It is one of the leading sports betting platforms in numerous states, having a presence in the likes of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The platforms from state to state are similar, bringing a consistent offering across the board. The interface for the DraftKings platform is unspectacular, with little to no animations or imagery to talk about. However, the green and gray color scheme does give the site a smart look and makes it easy to read. The menus are not overly cluttered so you can quickly find what you are looking for. In total, there are 17 sports you can bet on, with a diverse set of events catered for, including some of the more obscure leagues and matches across the world. There is a nice selection of lines and prop bets for most sports. A section has been dedicated to the live betting platform, with the score updating every few seconds in real-time, as well as the odds. For sports fanatics, there are player pools you can participate in where you try to predict the outcome of a certain number of games. There are cash prizes up for grabs for hots who perform the best with these predictions. There are also other regular promotions for existing players and a welcome package for new signups. This sees your first deposit matched 20%, up to a max bonus of $500. This deposit match percentage is a bit low in comparison with the rest of the sector in the US. Customer support is open on a 24/7 basis and you have all of the popular payment options looked after. Overall, DraftKings is a great offering across the board. It focuses more on performance rather than aesthetics, which is ideal for serious sports bettors. Pros Good range of sports and markets Dedicated real-time interface for live betting Myriad of promotions 24/7 customer support Cons Low deposit bonus match size Visit DraftKings Sportsbook Now FanDuel Sportsbook - Great balance of style and performance FanDuel is one of the main competitors of DraftKings in both the fantasy sports and sports betting sectors across the United States. It opened its online sportsbook in Indiana on October 26. The platform is a lot more polished than what you will find with DraftKings. The blue and white color scheme is nice and clear, with the entire layout looking smart and uncluttered. There are 16 different sports catered for currently. You have more than one hundred markets to choose from with the bigger events, which is ideal. There is also a nice interface for live betting, with everything being updated in real-time, allowing you to place bets on the fly, adjusting to changes in the circumstances of a given event. There is a diverse set of promotions on offer for the player. These offers are tailored to given events that are happening in a given week or a certain period of time. Of course, new signups are looked after too with a welcome offer. This sees these players getting a risk-free bet of up to $500. This means that if you lose your first bet, the stake will be returned to you in the form of a free bet. There is a mobile app for Android and iOS users, performing in a smooth and seamless manner in both cases. If you have an issue that needs a resolution, you can get in touch with the customer support team via email and live chat no matter what time or day of the week it may be. Overall, this is a great offering that ticks most boxes. Beginners and experienced bettors alike will feel at home with Indiana’s FanDuel sportsbook. Pros Nice selection of markets 24/7 customer support Aesthetically pleasing platform $500 Risk-free bet Cons Telephone support is not 24/7 Visit FanDuel Sportsbook Now Bottom Line As time goes on, there will be more online sportsbooks launching in the Indiana sector. This will make the current offerings even more competitive as they all try to get their own slice of the pie. If you are having an issue differentiating between the various offerings, you should get a pen and appear out and write down what exactly it is that you care about the most in an offering. Usually, a person will have two or three non-negotiables when it comes to an offering. You can then see which platforms fit these needs the best and then make an appropriate decision. One of the main mistakes people make when trying to filter through different options is to be distracted by flash bonus sizes. This should not be a key determinant of your decision, especially because a lot of these flashy offers are not so good when you dig beneath the surface and read their terms and conditions. Key Aspects of Online Sportsbooks in Indiana People in Indiana love sports. There are many college and pro sports teams in the state and the fan base always gets out and supports them in a massive way. That is why online sports betting has been such a success to date in the state. It is attracting a lot of customers from across state lines, such as in nearby Illinois as they want to partake in this online sports betting offering. There is an age requirement in place for placing sports bets in Indiana, being set at 21 years old. This is one of the reasons why you need to verify your identity when signing up for an online account. While you can register for an online sports betting account if you are outside of Indiana state lines, you will not be able to actually place any actual bets until you enter into the state. This is controlled by the geolocation aspects and the likes of VPNs cannot be used to try and bypass this step. Luckily, you will not have to go somewhere in person and sign up for an online sportsbook. Just like in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, you can set up an account through your mobile and not have to go anywhere to get started betting. You will simply need to provide your proof of address and a copy of your government-issued ID to the support team at the respective online platform you are signing up to. This process does not take long and is necessary to prevent the likes of underage gambling and money laundering. You will then be ready to get started placing sports bets as you please. Where Else is Online Gambling Legal in the US? AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY DC How do the online sportsbooks in Indiana track your location? For both the desktop and mobile offerings, there is a geolocation feature integrated into the platforms. This allows the app to track our location when you are trying to place a sports bet. It can be tricky for those who live near the border areas as they may have to verify their location a number of times when trying to place a bet. VPNs will not work and it is better to access the platforms via wi-fi as opposed to relying on cellular data. Who can place sports bets in Indiana? You have to be at least 21 years old to place a sports bet. You also have to be within state lines and verify your identity before placing an online sports bet. How many more sportsbooks will be opening up in Indiana? Currently, there are eight online sports betting licenses that are available in the state. It would be expected that all of these sports will fill up in the near future as it is a strong market, with Indiana having a population of more than 6 million people, as well as nearby states not having legal sports betting. There are also numerous off-track betting facilities and casinos in the state that now have retail sportsbooks. Can you bet on teams that are based in Indiana? In its current form, you are able to bet on teams that are based in Indiana. This includes the NBA team the Indiana Pacers, the WNBA team Indiana Fever, NFL team Indianapolis Colts, as well as college sports teams from Indiana University, Notre Dame University, Butler and Purdue University. In total, there are 24 college athletic programs in the state operating in the NCAA across D1, D2 and D3. Is there anything that Indiana residents are not able to bet on? Most major sports are open for you to bet on in Indiana, including pro and college sports involving home town teams. The exceptions are that you cannot bet on high school sporting events and there is no live betting allowable during NCAA games. About Andrew O'Malley Alex has been writing about the gambling industry for more than five years, covering everything from sports betting to casinos and poker. With the sector constantly evolving, he loves nothing better than staying up to date with the latest movers and shakers in the space. View all posts by Andrew O'Malley →
