Online Gambling West Virginia

West Virginia officially has sports betting, including online wagering, in 2020.

1. Online Gambling West Virginia
2. West Virginia Online Gaming
3. West Virginia Online Gambling Laws
4. Gambling In Wv
5. West Virginia Online Gambling Laws

West Virginia requires operators to initially pay $250,000 for an internet gambling license. Licenses last for five years and come with a $100,000 renewal cost. Online casinos and poker sites must cover a 15% tax rate. Meanwhile, internet betting operators pay a 10% rate. West Virginia's legal online gambling options include casino, poker, and sports gambling all regulated by the state. However, state-regulated offers do not exclude licensed offshore online gambling sites from being able to provide real money games. In addition, WV.

FanDuel Sportsbook is live with its sports betting app in West Virginia as of August 2019. DraftKings Sportsbook joined FanDuel a few days later and is live as well, giving West Virginians access to two of the most popular sportsbooks outside of Nevada. Most recently, BetMGM joined the market.

The Mountain State became the fifth in the US to offer legal sports betting in August 2018, following New Jersey, Delaware, Mississippi, and Nevada. It became the third with legal online sports betting as of December 2018, though it endured a six-month outage in 2019 before finally returning to service.

West Virginia Sports Betting in 2021

Legal sports betting options in West Virginia

If you want to bet on sports in West Virginia, you have a variety of options:

WV sports betting apps

There are currently three online sportsbooks available in the state:

• DraftKings Sportsbook: One of the top betting options in several states, the daily fantasy sports and sportsbook offers a full sports betting app in West Virginia.
• FanDuel Sportsbook: Another DFS company and a top competitor of DraftKings, FanDuel is the leading sportsbook brand across the country right now in terms of amount wagered.
• BetMGM Sportsbook: The app from MGM Resorts International, which operates casinos and sportsbooks around the country, is now live in the state.

Sportsbooks at WV casinos

There are five casinos that can offer WV sports wagering at retail locations

• Hollywood Casino was the first to go live and is the online partner of DraftKings.
• FanDuel is operating the sportsbook at the private resort, The Greenbrier.
• Mountaineer Casino in New Cumberland launched a sportsbook in 2019, but does not have an online platform.
• Mardi Gras Casino and Wheeling Island launched their retail sportsbooks in 2018. They also launched a now-defunct app available via BetLucky.com. After being shuttered for most of 2019, the two properties finally reopened their betting windows in 2020.

Recent WV sports betting news

History of West Virginia online gambling

West Virginia wasn’t one of the earliest states to begin discussing internet gambling. However, the legislature’s interest piqued when New Jersey challenged a federal ban on sports betting (PASPA) in 2016.

WV was one of five states to join New Jersey in this fight. They triumphed when the Supreme Court abolished PASPA in May 2018.

Politicians preemptively passed a bill on the matter in March 2018. The WV Lottery Sports Wagering Act (S 415), which allows land-based and online betting, went into effect after PASPA’s fall.

The now-defunct BetLucky accepted West Virginia’s first official online wager in December 2018. Today, multiple other operators serve the WV online sports betting market.

In 2019, Del. Jason Barrett introduced a lottery-backed bill that called for legal online casinos and poker sites. The West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act (HB 2934) passed in both houses in early 2019.

Gov. Jim Justice made the legislation official with his signature on March 9, 2019. DraftKings launched the state’s first online casino in July 2020.

West Virginia online sports betting

West Virginia currently features three legal online sportsbooks:

• BetMGM (in partnership with The Greenbrier)
• DraftKings (in partnership with Hollywood Casino)
• FanDuel (in partnership with the Greenbrier)

Online Gambling West Virginia

FanDuel and DraftKings weren’t the first bookmakers in the market after launching in August 2019. However, they were the first two operators to gain meaningful market share in the Mountaineer State.

BetMGM online launched in January 2020 to capitalize on Super Bowl LIV. It also appears to have staying power in the market.

Each of West Virginia's five land-based casinos can form partnerships with up to three online bookmakers (15 total). However, given the failures of BetLucky and other early operators, WV likely doesn’t have enough liquidity for up to 15 betting sites.

West Virginia online casinos

WV offers the following legal online casinos:

• BetMGM Casino (The Greenbrier)
• DraftKings Casino (Hollywood Casino)
• Chumba Casino (no partner—social gaming)

Tip: To follow the latest casino updated see the West Virginia online casino guide.

West Virginia Online Gaming

DraftKings was the first regulated internet casino to launch in West Virginia in July 2020. Much like with sports betting, BetMGM joined the party later in August 2020.

BetMGM and DraftKings are currently the only legal real-money casinos in the Mountaineer State. They accept real-money wagers and pay cash winnings.

Chumba, meanwhile, is a legal social gaming site. It sees players win coins that they can use to enter sweepstakes contests.

West Virginia poker sites

The Lottery Interactive Wagering Act allows for up to five WV poker sites. At the time of this writing, though, no legal online poker sites are available in West Virginia.

The state has been slow to work out all of the legal kinks with internet poker. Furthermore, it has yet to approve any applicants.

Operators are likely hesitant to jump into the WV market. After all, online poker is a game that heavily relies on liquidity to succeed.

West Virginia is only the 38th most-populous state in America. It would need to join a multi-state compact and share its player pool to create any meaningful liquidity.

Assuming internet poker does take off in WV, BetMGM and PokerStars (Flutter Entertainment) are two likely candidates to launch sites. PokerStars is especially significant, as it features more online poker customers worldwide than any other entity.

Requirements to obtain a WV online gambling license

Licensing costs

West Virginia requires operators to initially pay $250,000 for an internet gambling license. Licenses last for five years and come with a $100,000 renewal cost.

Online casinos and poker sites must cover a 15% tax rate. Meanwhile, internet betting operators pay a 10% rate.

List of eligible WV land-based casino partners

Internet gambling operators must partner with one of West Virginia’s land-based casinos. The state’s five brick-and-mortar casinos are:

• Hollywood Casino (Charles Town) - Owned by Penn National, this racino features over 2,500 slot machines, table games, and a poker room.
• Mardi Gras (Cross Lanes) - Owned by Delaware North, Mardi Gras offers almost 1,000 slots and a poker room.
• Mountaineer (New Cumberland) - Mountaineer features a poker room, a thoroughbred racetrack, 1,100 slots, and over 30 table games.
• The Greenbrier (Greenbrier County) - Opened in 1778, The Greenbrier resort received permission from the state to launch a private casino in 2008.
• Wheeling Island (Wheeling Island) - Also owned by Delaware North, Wheeling Island spreads over 1,100 slot machines and a poker room.

Who regulates online gambling in West Virginia?

The West Virginia State Lottery regulates both land-based and internet gambling in the Mountaineer State. It reviews applications, approves operators, and accepts licensing fees.

Deposit & withdrawal options

West Virginia online gambling sites boast a variety of deposit and withdrawal options. Therefore, you should experience little trouble funding your account and receiving payouts in WV.

Deposit options

• ACH (e-check) - This option lets you link a bank account to a gambling site and send funds to your account.
• Cash at the cage - Visit a land-based WV casino and deposit directly at its cage.
• Credit/debit card - Deposit using branded cards from Visa and Mastercard.
• E-wallet - Skrill and PayPal are both available for gambling deposits.
• PayNearMe - Fund your account through your local 7-Eleven.
• Prepaid card - You can use these casino-issued cards like a gift card.

Withdrawal methods

• ACH - Withdraw money to your linked bank account.
• Cash at the cage - Receive instant cashouts from a brick-and-mortar cage.
• E-wallet - Use PayPal and Skrill to collect payments.
• Paper check - Request a paper check, which may take up to 14 days to arrive.
• Prepaid card - Load funds back onto your casino-branded card.

West Virginia online gambling bonuses

Given that it hasn’t launched yet, online poker doesn’t currently offer bonuses. However, WV online casinos and sportsbooks feature some or all of the following deals. To see bonuses on legal sites in other states within the USA, check out the US online gambling guide.

No-deposit bonus

A no-deposit bonus becomes available after you register for an account. For example, you might receive $25 after signing up at a casino or betting site.

From here, you gamble to satisfy terms and conditions. You keep whatever is left from the bonus—plus any winnings —after meeting T&Cs.

Here’s an example:

• You receive a $20 no-deposit bonus.
• Rollover is 10x.
• $10 remains after you satisfy T&Cs.
• You can either cash out the $10 or keep gambling with it.

Deposit bonus

A deposit bonus matches a percentage of your deposit up to a specified amount. You get to withdraw the bonus after meeting terms and conditions.

Here’s an example:

• A WV gaming site offers a 100% match bonus worth up to $500.
• You deposit $300, thus qualifying for a $300 bonus.
• You can cash out the $300 after satisfying all terms.

Cashback

Exclusive to online casinos, cashback allows you to win back a percentage of your losses. Cashback typically applies to losses accrued over a specified period (e.g., seven days after depositing).

Here’s an example:

• A casino offers 10% cashback on your first deposit.
• The offer covers the first seven days following the deposit.
• You lose $100 within the first week.
• 100 x 0.1 = $10 in cashback

VIP rewards

WV online casinos and bookmakers may also offer loyalty benefits. These rewards apply to all of your real-money wagers.

Depending on the gambling type, you may be privy to some or all of the following:

• Comp points (exchange for cash)
• Deposit bonuses
• Free bets
• Free slots spins
• Land-based casino comps

Free bet

Online bookmakers offer free bets when you sign up and deposit. A free wager lets you win back potential losses stemming from your first bet.

West Virginia Online Gambling Laws

Here’s an example:

• An internet sportsbook offers up to a $500 risk-free wager.
• You place a $250 bet and lose.
• You can earn the $250 back by meeting T&Cs.

FAQs

Yes. Online sports betting, poker, and casino games are all legal in the Mountaineer State.
The WV Lottery Sports Wagering Act (S 415) makes internet betting legal. The West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act (HB 2934) allows for online poker and casino games.

The West Virginia Lottery regulates all internet gambling in the state. It works to guarantee that only qualified companies can operate in WV.
The state lottery also ensures that operators live up to the standards set forth by S 415 and HB 2934. It reserves the right to fine or even revoke the license of operators that break the rules.

You can gamble online in West Virginia if you’re at least 21 years old. You must verify your age when signing up at an internet casino or sportsbook.

No. You can enjoy WV internet gambling as long as you’re located within state lines at the time.
West Virginia online gambling sites use geolocation to determine where you are. As long as the software establishes that you’re in WV, you’re good to go.

The state only taxes winnings gained through the West Virginia State Lottery. Therefore, online casino and betting winnings aren’t subject to WV taxes.
However, people do need to list the following gambling wins on federal tax forms:
1. Online slots - Wins of $1,200 or greater
2. Online sports betting - Wins of $600+ (without TIN) or $5,000+ (if TIN is provided)
3. Online poker tournaments - Wins of $5,000 or greater

Gambling In Wv

West Virginia Online Gambling Laws

Internet poker is legal in West Virginia as of 2019. However, the market has been slower to form than the online betting and casino markets.
The Mountaineer State will likely feature one or more poker sites in the future. No timetable is available on when this will happen, though.