North Carolina Opens Sports Betting Application Portal 

Posted on: December 1, 2023, 02:12h. 

Last updated on: December 2, 2023, 01:12h.

Nick Juliano Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Legislation.

Applications are now being accepted for sports betting licenses in North Carolina.

North Carolina online sports betting
North Carolina regulators have opened an online application portal for mobile sportsbooks. Applications are due by December 27, but a go-live date hasn’t yet been set. (Image: Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority)

The state Lottery Commission launched a licensing page at ncgaming.gov, where sportsbook operators, service providers, and suppliers can apply for licenses to operate in the state.

Applications are due by December 27, but state regulators are asking would-be-licensees to get everything in as soon as possible to expedite the eventual launch of betting.

Earlier this week, the chairman of the Lottery Commission acknowledged that North Carolinans won’t be able to place bets in time for the Super Bowl in February but didn’t provide any additional indication of when regulators would be ready to launch. The sports betting law North Carolina enacted earlier this year gives the commission until June 15 to get a program up and running.

Agreements With Teams, Venues

Mobile sportsbook operators must secure “written designation agreements” with sports teams, leagues, or venues before submitting their applications. “These agreements are a unique requirement in North Carolina’s sports betting law,” according to the lottery commission. “They are private business agreements that must be established between an operator applicant and a sports team, a sports league, or venue.”

The sports betting law allows for in-person betting at professional sports venues, including Bank of America Stadium, home of the NFL Carolina Panthers; the Spectrum Center, home of the NBA Charlotte Hornets; PNC Arena, home of the NHL Carolina Hurricanes; and WakeMed Park, home of the NWSL North Carolina Courage. Temporary sportsbooks will also be allowed to operate during NASCAR races at Charlotte Motor Speedway and PGA Tour stops at Sedgefield Country Club and Quail Hollow Club.

North Carolina’s sports teams lobbied the state legislature ahead of the sports betting law’s passage to secure a cut of the proceeds sportsbooks will bring in. While sportsbooks will be required to enter agreements with the venues, North Carolina won’t allow sportsbooks to become the primary sponsor of arenas or stadiums.

$1M Licensing Fee

The state established three types of licenses. “Interactive sports wagering operator licenses” will be required by online sportsbooks that have reached agreements with sports teams or venues. Prospective operators must pay the state a $1 million licensing fee along with their application.

The state also is issuing licenses for service providers, which “create sports wagering markets and determine sports wager outcomes that involve the operation, management, or control of sports wagers.” Service provider applicants must pay a $50K fee.

Suppliers of goods and services to sportsbooks also require a license under North Carolina law. Those licenses come with a $30K fee.

Applicants must submit detailed documentation and agree to background checks for key personnel.

Key requirements of all applications include demonstrated compliance with state law and the establishment of responsible gaming programs.

Until the commission gives mobile sportsbooks a green light, wagering will be limited to the state’s three tribal casinos where in-person bets have been legal.