Louisville Sportsbooks

Though the Kentucky Derby is one of the biggest betting events in the world, horse racing wagering is not considered to be in the same category as sports betting. As such, while KY residents can safely and legally bet on the “fastest two minutes in sports” from pretty much anywhere in the state, there are not yet any domestic locations – either online or offline – where one can bet on sports in Louisville. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you can’t legally wager on sports in the city at all; on the contrary, you can!

By using an offshore sportsbook that serves Kentucky residents, you can easily and conveniently – and most importantly, legally – bet on professional and collegiate American and international sports by using an offshore sports betting website. While there are hundreds of such sites floating around on the Internet, you will definitely want to limit your gaming activities to only the top, most-trusted sportsbooks possible. The usual suspects (like Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, and MyBookie) fit the bill, and you can’t go wrong with joining any or all of these fantastic overseas sports betting sites. All Louisville residents are welcome, and signing up is 100% free.

That said, with sports betting being all the rage in the US right now, Kentucky is also considering its own legislation to formally legalize the practice inside the state. In fact, KY has introduced multiple sports betting bills every year since the repeal of PASPA in 2018. Though none have had success passing quite yet, lawmakers are determined to get something passed in 2023 or 2024.

If legal Kentucky sports betting launches in the near future (and it’s being speculated that such a contingency isn’t all that far off - after all, how can you turn down betting on the Kentucky Wildcats), there are at least a few Louisville venues that should have physical sports betting lounges where you’ll be able to place wagers on just about any contest you can come up with.

Best Kentucky Sports Betting Sites - 100% Trusted + Safe

Is Sports Betting Currently Legal In Louisville?

Before we get too deep into the weeds on this subject, it is important to understand that sports betting is not currently legal in Louisville, nor is it legal to wager on sports in any other city in the Bluegrass State. However, it is not illegal for the Frankfort statehouse to make sports betting a legal and regulated form of gambling in the state.

Let’s explain: In May of 2018, the US Supreme Court returned a momentous 6-3 majority decision to overturn the much maligned and, frankly, overreaching Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (also known as PASPA for short). By declaring PASPA to be unconstitutional and accordingly striking it from the federal legal rolls, the highest court in the land effectively made it legal for all 50 states to pass their own laws regulating sports wagering.

Now that PASPA is no more, Kentucky and every other state has “the ball in their court” to decide the fate of legalizing and regulating (and taxing) sportsbooks. Nearby states such as West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Mississippi have already passed laws of their own to that effect, but Louisville, the home of the internationally famous Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby, does not enjoy the same rights just yet, as the Kentucky legislature has remained contentious re gambling expansion.

The deeply conservative stance on gambling shared by most elected representatives in the Bluegrass State is understandable considering the state’s demographics, but nobody can deny that Frankfort’s silence on the issue has helped to give rise to 100% legal, overseas-licensed sportsbook websites like those cited above, all of which have become and remain the only legal Louisville sportsbooks by default.

Legal Minimum Age To Bet At A Louisville Sportsbook

Even though there are no sportsbooks – or even casinos or racinos – in Kentucky, we can still arrive at a fairly accurate assessment of what we think would be likely legal minimum age to bet at a Louisville sportsbook in the event that one (or several) were to be permitted to open under Kentucky state gambling law: 18 years of age.

While this is line with the mandated age minimums for existing gambling products in the state (horse racing betting, lottery, bingo, etc.), it’s not a sure thing that expanded betting would stick to 18. Most states that have legalized (or are in the middle of legalizing) sports betting have settled on 21 as being the preferred age, and this could easily become the case in KY. In the event that the state’s lawmakers decide to pursue a policy of substantive gambling expansion and reform and make sports betting for Kentucky residents legal – especially if new casinos are approved and constructed in which to house sports betting lounges – it’s very possible that 21 would be the legal minimum age to bet at a Louisville sportsbook.

On the other hand, we should point out that, even though legal overseas based offshore sportsbook sites such as Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, BetDSI, and MyBookie will all accept wagers from players as young as 18 years of age, we strongly recommend that our readers wait until they are at least 21 years old before betting on sporting events online. Even though there are no laws or regulations on the subject as yet in the Bluegrass state, and even though the home nations of our recommended Louisville sportsbooks say it is ok to bet on sports at these sites at the age of 18, we think it is just too risky.

Best Louisville Sportsbooks

If you’ve made it this far in our guide to the best sportsbooks in Louisville (or the websites that fill that niche due to the lack of state laws on the subject), then you are no doubt aware by now that the best Louisville sportsbooks are not actually located anywhere near Kentucky. In fact, sites such as Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, BetDSI and MyBookie are located in Europe and the Caribbean region, which makes their home bases quite far away from the Bluegrass State.

Then there is the added consideration that there are not even any casinos in a state as averse to gambling expansion as Kentucky is, leaving the nearest Class III gaming location to take up residence just across the river in southern Indiana. In the next section, we will take a closer look at this combination casino and resort that would probably make the closest thing to a favorite local sportsbook in Louisville if Indiana beats KY to the punch and launches legalized sports betting first. Sports betting in Kentucky is definitely on the way – it’s just a question of when.

(As a caveat to this selection, if KY sports wagering launches reasonably soon and allows Churchill Downs to open a sportsbook on the premises, that will invariably be the best Louisville sportsbook and the best Kentucky sportsbook altogether.)