Columbus Sportsbooks
The gambling situation for Columbus sportsbooks is not exactly what we would call wide open. In fact, Georgia state laws are some of the most restrictive in the entire country when it comes to wagering of any kind. The future of there ever being any real Columbus sportsbooks looks unlikely and this is the case even given that the US Supreme Court returned a majority decision in May of 2018 to overturn the longstanding Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA). PASPA had, for more than a quarter of a century, prohibited state legislatures from passing laws that would legalize sports betting.
Nevertheless, Georgia residents interested in placing wagers on their favorite teams, sports and athletes still have options available to them. How so? Legal offshore operators based in foreign countries and existing solely online serve and have served as the de facto Columbus sportsbooks for several decades despite the prohibitions in the state’s statutes. We recommend Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, and BetDSI due to their years of experience, reliability, and multitude of betting lines and odds.
However, digging into those 100 percent legal internet-based alternatives is not the purpose of this guide. Instead, our review of the best Georgia sportsbooks in Columbus is really about the casinos within a few hours drive that would make terrific sports betting outlets. This is assuming lawmakers in the Peach State were to have a change of heart and expand gambling efforts.
Betting On The Super Bowl In Columbus
Having your money saved up is the smart thing for players to have done before betting on the Super Bowl in Colombus. The Super Bowl has been known as one of the most exciting and profitable betting events in all of sports. The thing is now that this is known the only thing that has to be done is finding where to bet on the Super Bowl. Of course there is always land based sportsbooks in other states but there is also betting sites that players can sign up for. There are great betting options as well as bonuses that are offered as well. The fact that the age requirement is only 18 to sign up means that there will be a lot of players here which means more betting options will be offered. Banking methods are also here for players to choose from as well. All of the Super Bowl events can be bet on and the betting sites will have all of them for players to check out so be ready!
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Is Sports Betting Currently Legal In Columbus?
The state laws of Georgia make it abundantly clear that sports wagering, along with practically every other form of gambling – including pari-mutuel wagering thoroughbred and greyhound racing – is against the law. This basically rules out any possibility for current legal land-based sports betting in Columbus. As mentioned before, online betting sites are always an option as the state does not specifically prohibit online wagering. These industry-leading overseas businesses are licensed in foreign countries, which means US laws do not apply to them in the first place. However, if land-based is your game, skip down to our casino reviews, which go over the nearby Alabama casinos.
What Is The Closest Land-Based Sports Betting Option To Me?
Whether you venture to Philadelphia or Biloxi in Mississippi, the near 300 mile journeys would be the closest land-based sportsbook. Biloxi is home to many casinos and the options are abundant along the coast. In the middle of Mississippi in Philadelphia, tribal casinos present opportunities to enter a sports betting lounge and play the odds. The tribal casinos do not have the most lucrative lounges; however, they will provide the basis for what you need. Mobile betting is an option in Mississippi but you must be physically present at the casino, which makes driving through Alabama into MS to place a quick wager an impossible feat.
What Is The Legal Minimum Age To Bet At Columbus Sportsbooks?
Being that there are no legal sports betting outlets in the Empire State of the South, it is actually impossible to tell you the standard betting age in Georgia. However, we can give suggestions such as wait to gamble online until you are 21. If you are visiting one of the Alabama casinos reviewed below, keep in mind that their betting age is 19, so you have a two-year jump on the game.
Best Sportsbooks In Columbus
All the best sportsbooks in Columbus are technically not going to be found anywhere inside the Peach State. As we have already made abundantly clear by now, all of Columbus’ locals’ favorite sportsbooks are based online and hosted overseas and go by the names Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, and BetDSI. While it certainly does not appear that the socially and economically conservative politicians in Georgia will reverse their prohibitive stance on gambling expansion anytime soon, the possibility remains that they could eventually come around. Indeed, their many positives of embracing at least the highly lucrative sports betting market for the sake of the massive influx of increased tax revenues that would surely result from the decision to allow the opening and operation of regulated sportsbooks in Columbus and other major cities in the state.
However, if Georgia will not take a more progressive stance on allowing legal sports betting within its state lines, the chances look better for nearby states to Columbus – namely Alabama, which already has a few popular casino destinations that would make fantastic sportsbooks. At any rate, all three of the casinos we review in the sections below are only within a few hours drive of Columbus, the second largest city in Georgia in terms of population, which makes these gaming centers the de facto Columbus sportsbooks of the future. It all depends on how local lawmakers feel – or don’t feel – about getting a slice of an annual sports wagering pie worth somewhere between an estimated $150 billion and $250 billion annually.
- Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Wetumpka
- https://windcreekwetumpka.com/
- Type: Native American tribal land-based casino
- Location: Wetumpka, AL
- Address: 100 River Oaks Drive, Wetumpka, AL 36092
- First Opened: December 14, 2013
- Number of Rooms: 283 rooms
- Total Gaming Space: 2,500 games – slot machines, video poker, video roulette, video blackjack etc.
- Gaming Age: 21
- Top Attractions: Live entertainment venue with national musical and comedic acts scheduled throughout the year
- Best Restaurants: FIRE Steakhouse, Wind Creek Buffet, Wind Creek Grill & Grill To Go, Chilly Bean (coffee and pastries)
- Owner: Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Wind Creek Hospitality
- Phone Number: (866) 946-3360
The Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Wetumpka is one of three casino properties owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians and the Wind Creek Hospitality gambling operations company and the closest by way of a drive to Columbus, GA. Of the three casinos owned and operated by the tribe – the only federally recognized tribe in the state of Alabama - the Wetumpka location is the larger in terms of total gaming space, but it and its 283 rooms are more than double the capacity of its sister property in Montgomery. With 2,500 slot machines, video poker, video roulette, video blackjack, and other amusements to go along with several highly rated restaurants to suit even the most discerning of palettes, the Wind Creek Casinos & Hotel Wetumpka could only benefit from the increased traffic that a legit sportsbook offering would bring in, so we sincerely hope that, for the sake of Georgia residents who frequent this much-beloved casino, that Alabama’s lawmakers will take some pity on their neighbors to the east and make sports betting legal in the Heart of Dixie sooner rather than later.
- Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Montgomery
- https://windcreekmontgomery.com/
- Type: Native American tribal land-based casino
- Location: Montgomery, AL
- Address: 1801 Eddie L. Tullis Rd., Montgomery, AL 36117
- First Opened: 2001
- Number of Rooms: 123 rooms
- Total Gaming Space: 65,000 square feet – 2,200 games of the slots and video cards type variety
- Gaming Age: 21
- Top Attractions: Live entertainment venue with national musical and comedic acts scheduled throughout the year at BB King’s Blue Club, Golden Shears Barbershop & Salon
- Best Restaurants: BB King’s Blues Club (with live music nightly), Itta Bena speakeasy themed restaurant and bar with live music, Lucille’s Eatery
- Owner: Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Wind Creek Hospitality
- Phone Number: (866) 946-3360
Unlike its sister property located further up the road in the small Alabama town of Wetumpka, the Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Montgomery is located in one of the state’s largest and most populous cities, so its live entertainment venue – truly the spot’s claim to fame – attracts artists and performers of national renown. That means that even if guests do not come to enjoy the roughly 2,200 games and slots scattered across the fairly generous 65,000 square feet of available gaming space or one of the stellar restaurants available there (our favorite is the Itta Bena, which is themed like a swanky 1920s speakeasy nightclub), they are just as likely to show up for a show any night of the week. A sportsbook serving visitors from nearby Columbus would work wonders to draw in even heavier foot traffic at this favorite local gambling spot, but thus far politicians in Alabama seem content to stay out of the sports betting legalization movement sweeping the country in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn PASPA in May of 2018.
- Victoryland Greyhound Park And Quincy’s 777 Casino
- http://victoryland.com/
- Type: Commercial greyhound racing track, casino and hotel
- Location: Shorter, AL
- Address: 8680 County Road 40, Shorter, AL 36075
- First Opened: 1983
- Number of Rooms: 300 rooms
- Total Gaming Space: 502 gaming machines
- Gaming Age: 21
- Best Restaurants: Whitfield’s Steakhouse, O’s Lobby Bar, O’Brew Café
- Owner: Milton McGregor
- Phone Number: (866) 946-3360
If you want to bet on a greyhound race, a simulcast of a thoroughbred race or perhaps enjoy a few rounds of games on a new and exciting video terminal without having to get all gussied up on the weekend, then the Victoryland Greyhound Park and Quincy’s 777 Casino in the small town of Shorter is just what the doctor ordered. This local staple has been around since the early 1983 and continues to attract loads of people throughout the year with its mix of Southern charm and intimate surroundings, not to mention being one of the best locations for a Columbus sportsbook. In fact, if the state of Alabama were to allow sports betting to become a legalized and regulated activity, they could practically count on plenty of Columbus residents showing up to place wagers on their favorite sports (and maybe even some Alabama sports teams too, as there are a few of those that are worth betting on, right?). All that needs to happen is for this ideal location to become the ideal Columbus sportsbook that it seems destined to be.