New Sports Betting Bill in Arizona Can Realize Sports Betting

By: Anna

Posted: March 11, 2021

Updated: March 11, 2021

HB 2772 and SB 1797 are up for voting
The new sports betting bill in Arizona could make on-event sports betting real
There are pros and cons for the bills

America is slowly but surely easing up after the hard months of the past year. This makes people want to go out and experience more. Everyone is just so eager to experience any fun, public event, like sports games. And just in time for this, legislation in Arizona can make it possible for people to even wager on these occasions. The new sports betting bill in Arizona can soon realize bets inside sports venues. And gamblers just cannot wait!

Can you imagine the scenario when you go to a basketball game at Phoenix Suns Arena? Or watching baseball at Chase Field? And can you imagine getting even more excited about a game by placing some bets? Well, it seems like that soon you will not have to rely on your imagination, as Arizona is moving towards making on-site sports betting legal. House Bill 2772 and Senate Bill 1797 are moving through both the House and the Senate – each with quite similar aims. The new sports betting bill in Arizona can change how Arizonians enjoy their sports games.

Sports betting laws in the Grand Canyon State

You might be aware of the fact that each state in the US has its own laws concerning gambling. According to Letsgambleusa.com, the regulations are the following. “The current situation is not as dramatic, but the law isn’t well-adjusted to reality. Tribal casinos aside, most forms of land-based gambling are illegal in Arizona. The only exceptions include the state-operated lottery and wagering on horse and dog races, which are available exclusively on track. You can also engage in charitable games of bingo, raffles, and casino nights.” Gambling-related matters are covered by Arizona Revised Statutes ARS 13-3301 et seq. and ARS 5-101 et seq. The minimum gambling age is 21.

Summing up, the allowed forms of gambling are the following:

• land-based gambling (tribal casinos and poker)

• online gambling (par-mutuel and skill games only)

• lottery (intrastate and multistate games available)

• charitable gaming (bingo, raffle, pull-tabs, casino nights)

The new sports betting bill in Arizona

This new piece of legislation is groundbreaking. Partly because it would overcome the bounds set by the Arizona Tribal-State Gaming Compacts of 2002. The agreement did not let tribes operate casinos with sports betting options. But the above-mentioned HB 2772 and SB 1797 would change this completely. They would both make event gambling and online sports betting legal. According to these, there would be up to 10 professional teams and 10 tribes that can legally provide online wagering. If these are passed, wagers could bet in daily fantasy sports games, place bets at online gambling sites in the US, like Bovada, or at some Indian casinos. “This bill is modernizing the current gaming compacts,” House by Rep. Jeff Weninger said.

What the future holds for the new sports betting bill in Arizona

On February 10th, the Arizona House pushed the HB forward. On February 24th, the Senate Appropriations Committee pulled the SB but later added it to a previous bill as an amendment. After this, it passed 5-4 on a party-line vote. So, as for now, the next step is to wait: on March 10th, there will be another vote within a different committee. At this point, we cannot say for sure, that the bill will pass since there are always opponents to almost every case. Here, the main argument against the bill is that it might violate the gaming compacts with the tribes. Some also worry about its effect on small businesses. So, until they come to a decision, in the meantime we advise you to try online sportsbooks in the US, like Bovada.