Virginia Sports Betting

Virginia Sports Betting Quick Facts

Virginia Betting Apps

PointsBet Sportsbook

Talk about an incentive to try something new. PointsBet is offering a massive $2,000 in risk-free bets – and $1,500 of that is tied to new users making their first PointsBet, the operator’s proprietary betting system. Visit for the intrigue – and stay for the wide range of sports markets and strong promo game.

Check out our PointsBet sportsbook review.

BetMGM Sportsbook

When you’ve been in the gaming space as long as BetMGM has, you know a thing or two about optimizing the user experience. Add up the generous and frequent promos, the wide variety of sports with live-streaming options and an elite casino offering (if you’re into that sort of thing), and this app is strong.

Check out our BetMGM sportsbook review.

Caesars Sportsbook

Between the generous sign-up bonus, occasional free bets and strong profit and odds boosts offerings, Caesars does well to give players a reason to stick around. It also helps that Caesars swapped out a less-than-enjoyable William Hill interface in favor of something simpler and more user-friendly in the U.S.

Check out our Caesars sportsbook review.

FanDuel Sportsbook

FanDuel is that friendly, mostly reliable friend who will happily help you out of a minor jam but might not go as far as helping you move. The sleek interface and top-shelf live betting experience make FanDuel a must-add, though it couldn’t hurt to see more odds boosts on their Same Game Parlay options.

Check out our FanDuel sportsbook review.

Barstool Sportsbook

Barstool isn’t your ordinary sportsbook – and that’s a very good thing in this space. From the Barstool Tailgate Tour to personality-driven promos and contests to prizes like cruise discounts and VIP seating for entertainment, Barstool goes out of its way to take care of its Stoolies. Mission accomplished.

Check out our Barstool sportsbook review.

DraftKings Sportsbook

It pays to be popular with DraftKings, which offers a $100 referral bonus if your BFF (or mom, or acquaintance, or plumber, if the two of you are close) signs up for the app, as well. Regular free-play pools and contests will give you and your friends plenty to do without having to make big deposits, which is also nice.

Check out our DraftKings sportsbook review.

WynnBET Sportsbook

It’s hard to envision a sportsbook with as storied a history as Wynn being an underdog in the space, but it’s true. An above-average interface, fun Wynn-specific contests and giveaways (golf in Vegas!) and a non-restrictive bonus offer – albeit a small one – make this veteran operator worth a shot.

Check out our WynnBET sportsbook review.

BetRivers Sportsbook

You won’t get a four-figure bonus from BetRivers (unless $250.0 counts), but it comes in the form of a deposit match with a 1x rollover, so there’s a better chance of seeing it all than some bonuses in the industry. Of course, that isn’t enough to make up for BetRivers’ clunky home page and hum-drum odds offerings.

Check out our BetRivers sportsbook review.

Bally Bet Sportsbook

Bally has promised users that the best is yet to come – and that’s good, because they’re well behind the competition in the U.S. Their free bet comes in at half the industry standard, and their loyalty program forces players to rack up an absurd number of points for minimal free play rewards. The best is yet to come!

Check out our Bally Bet sportsbook review.

SI Sportsbook

Much like the website, the SI Sportsbook app layout is subpar, though it is slightly easier to navigate than the website. The promotions ribbon is easier to find, along with a clearly marked icon that allows you to explore bonuses and promos further. Still, the betting slip is cumbersome and forces users to work a little harder to find the information they're looking for.

Check out our SI Sportsbook sportsbook review.  

How to Bet in Virginia

Choose your sportsbook

Consult our top list above for the best sports betting options available to you in Virginia. Our interactive list allows you to sort sportsbooks based on a number of criteria, including banking options, bonuses and quality of customer service.

If you’re looking for more information before making your choice, be sure to check out our detailed, unbiased reviews for each of the top sportsbooks in Virginia. This is especially important if you want to understand how each book’s bonus offers work.

Register online

Registration requirements vary slightly by sportsbook, but most follow the same protocols. Be sure to have your personal information (name, address, phone number) and credit card details (number, expiry date, CVV) handy.

Deposit and claim your bonus

Once you’re comfortable with how your sportsbook’s new signup bonus works, it’s time to make your initial deposit and claim that sweet bonus. The majority of first-time offers for Virginians come in one of two forms:

• Risk-free bets: This offer guarantees you a refund on your first wager if it is graded as a loss. The sportsbook will refund your initial bet amount (up to a specific limit) either as cash or as site credit.
  
  
• Deposit match: This offer sees the sportsbook match your initial deposit dollar-for-dollar, though there are two caveats. The deposit match will come with a maximum limit, and in the majority of cases you will be required to “play through” your initial deposit by a certain multiple in order to earn the bonus.

Select and finalize your bet

Congratulations! You’re ready to place a wager. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the app interface before diving in. Most mobile operators make it easy for new sports bettors to navigate, but it’s still a good idea to know where everything is.

From there, you can place any type of wager you like; the most popular bet types are the moneyline, spread or total. You can also dive into team or player props, or even kick things off with a futures bet.

Once you have the desired wager(s) in your betting card, take one last look to ensure you’ve made the selections you want. If everything is good, simply click the “Bet” button – and you’re off!

Virginia Legal Sports Betting History

If you were choosing which states were most likely to approve sports betting legislation, you would probably put the one with ZERO casinos somewhere near the bottom of the list. And yet, here we are!

Virginia worked quickly to put a bill in place following SCOTUS’s repeal of PASPA, and while the first version wasn’t ultimately the one that was approved, it did have many of the key parameters in place (specifically the tax and operator fee, along with a ban on betting on any Virginia-based college team).

Here’s a look at Virginia’s sports betting history:

2018-19: Virginia works quickly

Armed only with a deep history of horse racing and 30-year-old lottery legislation, Virginia lawmakers surprised many by pushing a sports betting bill forward just six months after PASPA was overturned. 

From there, Virginia’s Senate commissioned a study of states that had already enacted sports betting legislation to see what kind of tax revenue they might be looking at were Virginia to join them. And not long after they got the answer they were looking for – an estimated $400 million annually – a new sports betting bill was introduced.

2020-21: VA's first year a huge success

Once all of the numbers and other provisions were agreed upon (including a pro league requirement that Virginia employ “official league data”), Governor Northam signed Bills SB 384 and HB 896 into law, formally legalizing sports betting in Virginia.

Several weeks later, on Jan. 21, 2021, FanDuel made state history by accepting the first legal sports wager within Virginia’s borders. That kicked off a wild year in the state, with 11 sportsbooks contributing to an impressive $3.21-billion handle figure for 2021.

2022: Still no betting on VA college teams

Year 2 of the Virginia betting experience brought plenty of new developments. Delegate Schuyler T. VanValkenburg (real name) introduced a bill intended to allow for wagering on Virginia-based collegiate teams; that bill was promptly voided, while a similar bill passed by the Senate but was struck down by the House.

January 2022 saw Virginia set a single-month handle record with a whopping $485.5 million, buoyed by the NFL and NCAA bowl season. Just over a month later, the state enacted a ban on gaming entities from saying “Virginia is for bettors” in any advertising, as a play off the state motto “Virginia is for lovers.” (See? We told you.)

Responsible Gaming in Virginia

Like most states, Virginia’s state gaming authority has put safeguards in place to ensure that bettors have a way out of any potential trouble spots. 

The Virginia Council on Problem Gaming manages the state’s self-exclusion program, which allows players to impose a self-ban on all gambling activity with a specific sportsbook. Players can also set deposit and bet limits of their choosing.

Visit the Virginia Council on Problem Gaming site.

Sports Leagues to Bet On

It will come as no surprise to see a rather extensive list of major professional and amateur sports available to Virginia bettors – a list that includes (but is not limited to):

• NFL
• NCAA Football
• NBA
• NCAA Basketball
• MLB
• NHL
• Golf
• Auto Racing
• Tennis
• Soccer
• MMA
• Esports

Unfortunately, Virginia is more restrictive than the majority of states when it comes to betting markets; here’s what is prohibited within state borders:

• Politics
• Off-field events (like the NFL Draft)
• Entertainment (including awards shows)
• College games involving Virginia-based teams

Virginia Retail Sportsbooks

We thought about putting one of those “UNDER CONSTRUCTION!” images here … you know, the one with the all-caps font and the guy in the yellow hard hat and orange vest jackhammering a street that isn’t really there? Well, it turns out that watermarks are VERY hard to remove, so went in this direction instead:

While Virginia has approved retail sports betting, you can’t yet wager in-person within state lines. Construction is underway on four casinos that will ultimately have dedicated sportsbooks, but for the time being, Virginia residents and visitors will have to settle for making their sports wagers via their online devices.

Virginia Sports Betting Tax & Handle

For a state that doesn’t have so much as a slot machine or craps table, Virginia sure does love its gambling.

Virginians came out in droves once sports betting was legalized within state borders, putting up nearly $59 million in handle over the first 10 days despite having just four mobile operators to choose from. And as you might expect, things really picked up once the NFL and college football seasons kicked off, with Virginia stringing together six straight months of $400+ million in handle.

Here’s a look at Virginia’s monthly sports betting handle beginning in 2021:

2021

2022

November 2021 stands out as the most notable month of Virginia’s sports betting journey so far. Sportsbooks generated a record $48.3 million in revenue thanks to a hefty 12 percent hold. That meant $4.2 million in taxes, easily the highest on record. 

Sportsbooks pay a 15 percent tax rate on gaming revenue.