Lexington Sportsbooks

Lexington, Kentucky SportsbooksKnown far and wide as the Horse Capital of the World, Lexington, KY, is not only nestled into the heart of the region from which the appropriately termed Bluegrass State takes its name. Though despite a rich history of horse racing betting, there are no Lexington sportsbooks. This is especially perplexing given that Lexington is the 28th largest city in the United States when considering its 285.5 square miles of combined land area in Fayette County, and due to the fact that it boasts a population of well over half a million people, many tens of thousands of which are ardent sports fans. All that is to say that there is definitely a market for not just one but several top sportsbooks in Lexington. The root of the problem, in the end, is the state legislature, which, true to its deeply conservative social underpinnings, has historically opposed most forms of gambling, to say nothing of allowing any legal operation of sportsbooks inside the Bluegrass State’s borders.

However, the situation in Lexington is far from dire, as the Kentucky state statutes that ban most all forms of gambling (with the exclusion, of course, of wagering on horses in the Kentucky Derby and other races – this is the next town over from Louisville, where the legendary Kentucky Derby takes place, after all) has scarcely anything to say regarding online wagering of any kind. That means that reputable, licensed and regulated offshore sportsbook websites based overseas have been able to set up shop as the de facto Lexington sportsbooks of choice for the better part of the last generation. Additionally, now that the US Supreme Court’s May 2018 overturned the reviled and unconstitutional Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), nearby casino properties across the river in neighboring Indiana have now become the newest sportsbooks in Lexington by default, even if Kentucky never formally legalizes sports betting.

Best Kentucky Sports Betting Sites - 100% Trusted + Safe
#1
Bovada Sportsbook50% Up To $250VISA + Wire Transfer
#2
BetOnline Sportsbook50% Up To $1,000 VISA, Bitcoin, Cash Wire
#3
MyBookie Sportsbook50% New Member Bonus!VISA, Bitcoin
#4
Xbet Sportsbook100% Up To $300 VISA, Bitcoin
#5
Sportsbetting Sportsbook50% Up To $1,000 Bitcoin, Wire Xfer, VISA

Is Sports Betting Currently Legal In Lexington?

We should begin our guide or preview to the top sportsbooks in Lexington by clearing up one simple fact: sports betting is currently not technically legalized in Lexington, nor is it yet legalized anywhere else in the beautiful Bluegrass State. As much as that is a shame, being that the state is home to some of the country’s most frequently successful collegiate sports programs and one of the world’s single most wagered-upon events in the Kentucky Derby, it is equally true that the state’s strict laws related to gambling do not have anything to say about individuals using an internet connection to place wagers. What that means in practical terms is that, even if there are no Lexington sportsbooks physically located in the state of Kentucky, there are still plenty of overseas-based sports betting websites that provide all the same thrills and pay out the same huge bills as a casino sports wagering outlet, all while not putting you in the position of running into trouble with the law.

Simply put, there is no reason to trust a shady local bookie when sites such as Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, BetDSI, and MyBookie make for excellent Lexington sportsbooks in their own right. You will have a hard time finding internet-only sports betting outlets with the same combination of reliability, reputability, security, and proven long term success as these five operators, especially not with the varieties of betting lines and the kinds of favorable betting odds we are talking about here. It is always free to sign up at any of the aforementioned sites, so give any or all of them a try, and start picking winners today.

Legal Minimum Age To Place Bets At Lexington Sportsbooks

Even though all the best sportsbooks in Lexington are technically not based in the city at all, but merely serve the US sports betting market from their home bases online and overseas (and we think sites such as Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, BetDSI, and MyBookie are the best of the best in terms of internet sportsbooks), we can still draw a fair number of reasonable conclusions about Kentucky’s sports wagering situation. Common sense makes it clear that the legal minimum age to place bets at Lexington sportsbooks would be – or will eventually be, if you prefer to think about things that way – 21 years old.

While on this subject, it is worth pointing out that the legal offshore sportsbook sites serving the Lexington market for more than a quarter of a century in some cases do not have the same “21 and up” age requirement to place wagers on your favorite sports if you are an account holder. Because of the much laxer regulations on sports wagering placed on sportsbook operators by the gaming regulatory bodies in their home nations in Europe and the Caribbean region, our most frequently recommended sportsbook websites will take your money on a bet so long as you are at least 18 years old or older.

Most Popular Teams To Bet On At Lexington Sportsbooks:

Whether you’re going to wager at an offshore sportsbook right now or are content to wait for Kentucky or neighboring Indiana to open land-based sportsbooks of their own, Lexington allegiances to the various sports teams in and around the state are unlikely to change. When it comes to NCAA sports, the Kentucky Wildcats are the most popular program in the state, as their men’s basketball team is a national championship contender every year. For college football, the resurgent Louisville Cardinals are the team that gets the most betting action.

On the pro side, there are no local clubs to support, but Lexington bettors favor the NFL’s Bengals (somebody has to, right?), the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, the MLB’s Cincinnati Reds, and the NHL’s Nashville Predators. With heavy fandom despite any real local presence, it’s no surprise that more than 400,000 KY residents spend several billion dollars wagering on their favorite players and teams each year.

Best Sportsbooks In Lexington

As should be abundantly clear by now, all the best sportsbooks in Lexington are based online and found at offshore sportsbook websites such as Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, BetDSI, and MyBookie, all of which, frankly, have odds that far outstrip the best that most physical land-based casino sportsbooks can offer.

In the next few sections, we will go over a few of the most salient features of the closest casino properties to Lexington, KY, and discuss why we think these gaming centers have all the features needed to genuinely become the best sportsbooks in Lexington by default, at least until the legislature legalizes sports betting in Kentucky. Nevertheless, we certainly look forward to the possibility that either or both of these elite casinos near Kentucky area can one day soon become outlets for legal sportsbooks so that our friends in Lexington can get in on the action more easily.

Belterra Casino

Belterra Casino

  • Belterra Casino
  • https://www.belterracasino.com/
  • Type: commercial riverboat casino
  • Location: Florence, IN
  • Address: 777 Belterra Drive, Florence, Indiana 47020
  • First Opened: November 20, 1998
  • Number of Rooms: 608 rooms and suites
  • Total Gaming Space: 40,000 + square feet (1,600 slot machines and 55 gaming tables – roulette, 12 poker tables, blackjack, craps, etc.)
  • Top Attractions: shows and concerts in the performance events venue – featuring national level musical artists and comedic acts scheduled throughout the year, access to the Belterra Spa and Salon, Belterra Golf Course (designed by PGA Tour course designer Tom Fazio)
  • Best Restaurants: Aquarium Cafe – seafood, Casino Cafe – deli, Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse - steak and seafood, Out of Bounds – deli, Starbucks - Coffee and treats, Ultimate Buffet - large buffet
  • Owner: Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc.
  • Phone Number: 812-427-7777

If you are looking to take in some of the natural beauty of the Indiana countryside while you enjoy hours and hours of gambling fun, then the Belterra Casino, owned and operated by leading national operator Pinnacle Entertainment, Inc., may be just the ticket for you. Though the total space on the gaming floor is somewhat limited at only 40,000 square feet, the Belterra Casino makes up for the mildly cramped quarters with plenty of possibilities for wagering and winning big, with more than 2,000 gambling stations ranging fr om all of today’s popular video and mechanical slot machines to dozens of tables with all your favorite card games and casino games from poker to roulette to blackjack.

Before you hit the casino, you can hit the links on the 18-hole Belterra Golf Course, designed by PGA Tour veteran designer Tom Fazio, which winds its way through pristine lakes and a collection of more than 2,200 trees. Once you have played all the golf you can handle, you can retire early to one of the 608 lavishly-appointed hotel rooms and apartments overlooking views of the majestic Ohio River with the backdrop of the Belterra Golf Course, or you can head downstairs to any number of great restaurants like the Aquarium Café or Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse, before taking in a night of shows at the live concert venue. The bottom line is this: For a great time on vacation, it is tough to beat the Belterra Casino. Now that it also includes sports betting along with all these other amenities, it’s clearly the best possible Lexington sportsbook currently in reach of Lexington residents.

Horseshoe Southern Indiana Hotel & Casino

Horseshoe Southern Indiana Hotel & Casino

  • Horseshoe Southern Indiana Hotel & Casino
  • https://www.caesars.com/horseshoe-southern-indiana/
  • Type: commercial riverboat casino
  • Location: Elizabeth, IN
  • Address: 11999 Casino Center Drive, Elizabeth, IN 47117
  • First Opened: November 20, 1998
  • Number of Rooms: 503
  • Total Gaming Space: 93,000 square feet (2,800 slot machines and 140 gaming tables – roulette, poker, blackjack, craps, etc.)
  • Top Attractions: concerts and shows featuring major recording artists throughout the year, Envy Bar & Lounge (nightclub), Smoke & Rye Entertainment (bar with live entertainment on Friday and Saturday), heated indoor pool and hot tub facilities, Golf at Chariot Run, Churchill Downs (in Louisville, KY), the Louisville Slugger Museum
  • Best Restaurants: Jack Binion’s Steak (upscale restaurant), The Spread Buffet (casual dining), JB’s Café (casual dining), Corner Café & Bar (quick bites), Aroma Café & Bar (quick bites, wine and spirits), Graeter’s Ice Cream (frozen treats)
  • Owner: Vici Properties, Caesars Entertainment
  • Phone Number: (866) 676-7463

Also popular with Kentucky residents from Louisville due to its close proximity to both Bluegrass State population centers, the Horseshoe Southern Indiana Hotel & Casino is among the biggest and most well-attended gaming properties in the entire region. It is no exaggeration that now that Indiana’s lawmakers have decided to go all in for gambling expansion that features legal and regulated sport betting for its casinos, this place has easily become one of the best sportsbooks in Lexington for all intents and purposes.

It all comes down to this Elizabeth, IN, casino’s practically unbeatable combination of virtues that any Class III gaming center would be proud to have that really entices us with thoughts of it becoming not just a locals’ favorite sportsbook in Lexington, but a real regional power in the growing segment in the eastern half of the country post-PASPA.

The Horseshoe Southern Indiana features 503 sprawling rooms, nearly 100,000 square feet of space to gamble and literally thousands of gaming stations featuring slots machines, roulette, poker, blackjack, craps, and more. There are also regularly scheduled headlining national level musical performances at its huge open-air concert venue throughout the year, and guests at the Horseshoe get access to a PGA Tour-caliber golf course at the Chariot Run and easy access to nightlife spots galore once they’re tired of winning at the casino. The Horseshoe Southern Indiana is already a gambler’s and vacationer’s mecca, so if it became the next in what will hopefully soon be a large number of newly opened Lexington sportsbooks, then so much the better: everyone from Kentucky’s legions of sports fans to the state treasuries of not one but two states stand to win from such an arrangement.