Is sports betting legal in Georgia? Latest 2025 updates

Despite backing from Atlanta’s professional sports teams and potential tax revenue benefits, Georgia remains one of the eleven states prohibiting sports betting. Majority support from the voting public has failed to sway state lawmakers from amending GA’s current gambling laws. 

The short answer is no for those wondering, “Is sports betting allowed in Georgia?”. Discover the roadblocks and trace the timeline of attempts to legalize sports betting in the Peach State.

No, Georgia has not legalized sports wagering, and certainly not for a lack of effort. While local lawmakers have introduced several different sports betting-related measures since 2018, none have been successful.

Efforts failed again in March after the state House of Representatives adjourned without ever bringing a pair of bills to a vote. Proponents hope to renew their push during the next legislative session in 2026. 

After failing to make considerable progress on legislation for a seventh consecutive year, Georgia remains one of just eleven states without legal sports betting. The latest failure came despite support from four Atlanta-based professional sports teams: the Falcons (NFL), Hawks (NBA), Braves (MLB), and United FC (MLS), who banded together to form the Georgia Professional Sports Integrity Alliance.  

On the other hand, opponents worry about sports betting opening the door to addiction issues, especially among younger bettors. It’s been described by Mike Griffin, a representative of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, as “legalized fraud.”

Notably, neighboring Southern states such as Alabama and South Carolina have yet to pass sports betting laws. It is available in Florida, but only through the Hard Rock Bet app or casino venues operated by the Seminole Tribe.

Georgia’s quest to legalize sports betting has been a series of stops and starts, but mostly stops.

Gov. Brian Kemp’s lukewarm stance regarding legislation hasn’t necessarily helped. It’s wholly different from his opponent in the 2022 gubernatorial race, Stacey Abrams, who doubled down on her support for sports betting and casinos.

With Kemp in office, efforts have continued to fail despite the backing of some of Georgia’s most prominent professional sports teams. Republicans as a whole remain far from unified.

In 2024, House Minority Whip Sam Park, a Democrat, voted to pass a pair of sports-betting related measures — Senate Resolution 579 and Senate Bill 386 — albeit without a groundswell of support from his fellow party members. Despite the urging of some lawmakers to bring the matter to a public vote, little progress was made.

A 2025 measure proposed by Rep. Marcus Wiedower, House Bill 686, called for up to 16 licenses and a betting tax of 24%. Contrary to a Senate proposal, casinos were not included. That, too, failed to gain enough traction.

Is sports gambling legal in Georgia? No, and there’s no telling if and when that will change. The closest options available include DFS sites, including PrizePicks and Underdog Fantasy, social sportsbooks, and offshore betting sites. 

Polling released in January by the University of Georgia and Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce found that 63% of Georgia voters, including 72.9% of males, want legal sports betting.

Proponents often point to Georgia’s substantial population of approximately 11.1 million —  the third-largest state yet to legalize sports wagering — and rich sports culture as reasons to buy in. For what it’s worth, in 2024 alone, neighboring Tennessee took in more than $5 billion in bets.

Nevertheless, many lawmakers remain resistant to giving online sports betting the green light.

Below is a sample of the professional sports offered in the Peach State, which is also home to the Masters, the PGA’s most prestigious tournament, and one of the country’s most accomplished baseball franchises.

Georgia lawmakers can only revisit potential legislation in 2026. For anyone asking how to bet on sports in Georgia legally, know this: several hurdles must be cleared, including calming opponents’ fears of problem gambling.

Any constitutional amendment would require voter approval, meaning legal sports betting is not imminent in Georgia. In fact, Georgians will likely have to wait until 2026 at the earliest, and even that is no guarantee. That’s important to remember for anyone wondering if it is legal to bet on sports in Georgia.