Washington D.C. is the hotspot for everything important in United States government and politics.
It was somewhat surprising how quickly D.C. legalized sports gambling after the overturn of PASPA. Considering how often the position of keeping sports betting was argued in the political halls, it was interesting to see how quickly the district flipped. In 2019, Governor Muriel Bowser signed a bill into law supporting the legalization.
With roughly 700,000 residents, D.C. has all four major professional sports teams. The Washington Capitals, Wizards and Nationals play within the district, while the Washington Commanders officially play in Maryland but are affiliated with D.C. The four Divisions 1 programs in the district are Georgetown, American, George Washington and Howard.
The surprising legalization in Washington D.C. was important for other states on the fence thinking about passing legal sports gambling laws. An important area that was once seemingly against the issue was now pushing for it. The hotspot of D.C. politics was a leader in other states legalizing.
Yes, gambling is legal in Washington D.C. Governor Muriel Bowser signed Bill 22-944 into law January of 2019. After the approval of United States Congress, sports betting was officially legal in May 2019. Gamebet DC became the first legal sportsbook in the district when it was launched in May 2020.
Washington D.C. has interesting rules when it comes to online sports betting. The DC Lottery runs Gamebet and is the only sportsbook permitted citywide. Two other sportsbooks, BetMGM and Caesars, can only operate around their physical retail locations. This makes Gamebet DC hold a virtual monopoly over the online wagering space. There have been discussions to open up a less restrictive online policy, but that hasn’t come to fruition yet.