? Tennessee Online Gambling Overview

Tennessee sports betting went live on Nov 1 2020, after the legalization of online gambling in Tennessee. In addition to online sports wagering, daily fantasy sports, betting on horse races, and lottery games are allowed for Tennessee gamblers. However, there are no land-based casinos in the state, and there is no plan to legalize online casino gambling any time soon. There is a handful of social casinos in Tennessee where you can play games for fun, but having state-regulated online casinos legal in Tennessee isn’t happening anytime soon.

Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation regulates online gambling and the Tennessee sports betting market.

Online gambling was legalized in Tennessee in 2019 when the sports betting bill was approved.

? Tennessee Online Casinos & Gambling Legislation

As of September 2024, Tennessee online casino gambling is illegal. There are no Tennessee online casino apps, and there are no land-based in-state casinos either. People have a strict attitude towards casino gaming in Tennessee, and Gov. Bill Lee has called this type of gambling “destructive”. Therefore, Tennessee residents should not hold their breath waiting for a new online gambling expansion.

Social casinos with some slot games resembling your conventional online casino style games are available, but they don’t offer casino gambling like video poker or live casino games. Note that social casinos are not real money online casinos, and don’t reward you with real money prizes.

If you wish to play online slots for real money or online poker, you need to travel to a state where playing casino games online is legal, like Pennsylvania or Michigan. While we hope TN will expand beyond online sports betting and introduce other forms of legal gambling, the best online casinos will not be up in a couple of years in the Volunteer State.

When Will Tennesee Legalize Online Casinos?

There is currently no set timeline for the legalization of any form of casino gambling in Tennessee, indicating that it is not a pressing matter and remains a distant possibility. Governor Bill Lee, while approving the sports betting bill, expressed his appreciation to state lawmakers for their efforts to prevent the establishment of casinos within the state. Consequently, the launch of Tennessee online casinos, if it happens at all, is expected to be a time-consuming process.

Despite the absence of local casinos, a significant number of Tennessee residents continue to travel across state borders to neighboring states that offer casino gambling. This trend is particularly prominent in Memphis, where residents actively support numerous casinos located in Tunica, Mississippi (40 miles away), and Southland Park Gaming & Racing in West Memphis, Arkansas (7 miles away). In the pursuit of additional tax revenue, Tennessee lawmakers may eventually consider exploring the potential of online casino gambling to retain Tennessee players within the state, particularly if online sports betting proves to be more successful than anticipated.

? Legal Online Casino in Tennessee – Sweepstakes Casinos & Social Casinos

Now that it’s been established that real money casino gambling sites are not legal in Tennessee, let’s have a look at the extent of an online casino experience you can expect to have in the Volunteer state.

Although licensed real money online casinos aren’t available for Tennessee players, they can still play with sweepstakes casinos and social casinos. Sweepstakes and social casinos provide online gaming experiences for players to play for fun, not for real money.

Social casinos let you play with daily free coins without ever endangering your own money. Some sweepstakes casinos offer opportunities to redeem prizes in exchange to virtual coins.

Casino Games at Tennessee Social Casinos

Social casinos and sweepstakes offer a selection of games that are basically identical to popular online casino games. Slot games are the most played casino games at the top online casinos. Social casinos usually boast a good selection of online casino-style games, reminiscent of the ones found at the best online casinos.

Social casinos are the best way for Tennessee players to play casino games in a manner that’s compliant with the gambling regulations in Tennessee.

Poker in Tennessee

Online poker as cash games is also against Tennessee law. If you play poker on offshore online casinos, you are guilty of a Class C misdemeanor, so we recommend sticking to regulated gambling options and visiting Las Vegas or neighboring states when you want to participate in poker games. Overall, if you wish to play online casino games that pay real money, please do so with the safest online casinos: the licensed casino operators in NJ, MI, PA, or WV.

Although there’s no legal real money Tennessee casino, you can still play with social casinos for fun – no money involved!

? Introducing the Best Tennessee Casino Bonuses

Although there’s no real money involved in social casinos, they’ve still introduced casino bonuses – at least sort of. Unlike real money online casinos that require online gamblers to risk their own funds, social casinos only require you to create an account with them. BonusFinder has reviewed some of the social casinos and their new player packages below:

Tennessee Casino Bonus Types

• No Deposit Bonus Casino: Receive welcome bonus money directly into your account just for signing up. You will likely have to risk that bonus money at least once before redeeming it.
• Deposit Match: Make an initial deposit into your account and the casino operator will match that amount up to 100 percent or possibly more. This type of bonus comes with playthrough restrictions, with the bonus money released in increments the more you play. Read the terms and conditions closely.
• Loyalty Bonus: May be offered to long-term players who have reached or surpassed specific wagering thresholds.
• Free Spins: Generally offered to new players, allowing them free slot spins to try new games and win money.

? Casino Games in Tennessee

Online casinos offer the same games found in traditional casinos, and add a few more types to the mix. They include:

• Online Slots: Online casinos can replicate the thousands of authentic slot games offered at land-based casinos to fit comfortably on your mobile screen. New slot titles add animation and 3D imaging. You would also be able to play free slots.
• Online Poker: Tennessee does not allow poker rooms. Online poker in other states offers both cash games and tournament play for a variety of stakes and entry fees. Tennessee does have a famous poker alumnus: 2003 World Series of Poker champion Chris Moneymaker.
• Online Roulette: The online version features identical rules with a digital electronic random number generator replacing the physical wheel.
• Online Blackjack: The most popular table game at both land-based and online casinos. The latter allows players a variety of blackjack games to choose from (Blackjack Switch, Spanish 21, etc.) with lower minimum bets.
• Online Lottery: Under Tennessee law, lottery tickets must be purchased in-person at a participating retailer and only with cash. Online sales are prohibited by the Tennessee state officials.
• Live Dealer: Live table games dealt by an actual person from a studio and streamed to your computer or mobile device. Live dealer helps create a more social, live casino experience. Availability of live dealer games varies by state with some offering sparse and others more robust options.

? Tennessee Sports Betting

Rep. Rick Staples introduced HB 0001 to the state legislature in 2018, and the Tennessee sports betting bill became a law in May 2019 when Gov. Bill Lee let it pass into a state law without his signature. This sports betting law made Tennessee the first state in the United States to legalize without any casinos or retail betting locations.

However, Tennesseans had to wait until November 2020 before online sportsbooks actually opened. With a fairly high revenue tax and licensing fee, TN hasn’t seen a similar sportsbook app explosion like other states, and offshore sites unfortunately still gain new players.

Sports Betting Rules and Regulations

Sports betting in Tennessee launched on Nov 1, 2020, and it became the first state to offer online wagering without an existing gaming industry. As of now, there are still no Tennessee casinos, and the legal sportsbooks have few restrictions from the Tennessee regulator.

One of the notable regulations is the 10% hold, which applies to all legal sports wagering and makes the betting lines worse compared to the illegal options available. Tennessee online sports betting operators continue to demand the hold to be revoked, but thus far have not had success. The tax rate is 20%, and tax revenue from the gross gaming revenue will be used on education, local programs, and problem gambling.

Tennessee bettors can place bets anywhere in the state with very few limitations; the only prohibited wagers are in-game bets on college sports. Common bets are moneyline, point spread, total, parlay, and future.

In order to sign up at one of the books, TN regulations demand that a sports bettor provide some personal information for identity verification during the registration process, such as phone number, email address, and social security number. Geolocation technology ensures that all users are within Tennessee state lines. Finally, you must be 21 years old to participate in online gambling. This is standard practice for all regulated gambling states.

Tennessee Sports Betting Sites

Tennessee’s sports betting market is growing rapidly. Although the state debuted with four sports betting licenses, several other online sportsbooks have also received a sports betting license. Online sportsbooks give players up to $1,500 in bonus money to bet on sports in Tennessee. All operators also give out competitive ongoing promotions. Note that there are no retail sportsbooks in Tennessee, so you need to use the websites or download an iOS or Android app on your mobile devices. Some of the best betting platforms in TN include the following:

? Daily Fantasy Sports

Somewhat surprisingly, Tennessee was among the first states to regulate daily fantasy sports. Daily fantasy sports operators are allowed to operate freely under Tennessee gambling laws, as former Gov. Bill Haslam legalized DFS into Tennessee law back in 2016. Therefore, Tennessee residents can play daily fantasy sports with national operators like FanDuel and DraftKings.

? Horse Betting

There are no off-track betting venues or horse tracks in Tennessee, but horse race betting is allowed in the state in the form of pari-mutuel wagering. Several horse racing betting sites offer mobile apps that are completely legal in Tennessee, so you can participate in pari-mutuel wagering pools if you wish. There’s even some talk of getting some actual horse racing going in TN in the foreseeable future.

? Tennessee Lottery

The Tennessee State Lottery, now operated by the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation, was legalized in 2002 with more than 60% of Tennessee residents voting in favor. Although gambling is not available through the Lottery, you can follow the state lottery online and buy lottery tickets to play Tennessee lottery games.

? Online Gambling Legalization Timeline

The road to legal online gambling has been long in the U.S., but Tennessee was one of the early adopters of legal gambling sites. In addition, the entire industry is totally online and there is no land-based gambling in the state.

?? 2010: Tennessee allows charitable gambling for non-profit organizations.
?? 2016: The Volunteer State begins to regulate daily fantasy sports with Gov. Bill Haslam signing the bill, right after Tennessee Attorney General rules DFS illegal.
?? 2018: The U.S. Supreme Court rules PASPA as unconstitutional; states can now legalize sports betting and regulate online gaming as they see fit.
?? 2019: Tennessee lawmakers begin to work on online betting regulations.
?? 2020: Mobile sports betting went officially live in Tennessee as the first sportsbooks launched.

Last updated: 08/27/2024