Gambling in Arizona

Our short description of Arizona gambling laws is a good starting point if you’re interested in the current legal state of casinos, betting, lotteries and daily fantasy sports in Arizona.

Casinos in Arizona

In Arizona, gambling is permitted only on Native American land, which is 27% of the state’s territory. Currently, there are 22 tribal casinos in Arizona. In December 2015, the Tohono O’odham Nation has opened a casino without authorization from the Arizona Department of Gaming. Without a certification, the tribe operates only bingo-style games, resembling slot machines. Since its opening, Arizona officials are said to be considering the revocation of their gambling compact with the tribe.

Lotteries in Arizona

Arizona’s state lottery is called “Arizona Lottery”. In 2015, the Arizona Lottery introduced their first-ever game booklet, the Big Money Game Book. The booklet includes five different scratchers with a promising USD 150,000 possible win. In 2016, the Arizona Lottery will celebrate its 35th birthday. There’ll be nine special games released this to commemorate the anniversary. Since its establishment, the lottery has paid out more than USD 6.2 billion for players.

Online gambling in Arizona

When it comes to online gambling, Arizona gambling laws are among the strictest in the US. The only legal type of online betting in Arizona is for games of skill, such as scrabble. All other forms of online gambling are strictly prohibited, unless specifically excluded from Arizona gambling laws. Even the promotion of gambling is considered a criminal offense.

Daily Fantasy Sports in Arizona

Arizona is among the few states where even the biggest Daily Fantasy Sports sites are banned from operation. This is because Arizona gambling laws, unlike other US state gambling laws, don’t provide a loophole for daily fantasy sports betting. Amanda Jacinto, the information officer of Arizona’s Department of Gaming declared that Daily Fantasy Sports are definitely illegal in Arizona. In 2014, there was a spark of hope to change this strict outlook with Senate Bill 1468, however it did not pass due to pressures from tribal interests.