Is sports betting legal in Texas? 2025 status & future legalisation timeline

If you’re wondering if sports betting is legal in Texas, the short answer is no… at least not yet.

Despite Texas being home to the five-time Super Bowl winners, the Dallas Cowboys, and five-time NBA championship winners, the San Antonio Spurs, the legal status of wagering on sports in the Lone Star State is a hotly contested topic.

The issue features fascinating twists and turns, countless legislative pushes, and overwhelming public interest, yet many Texans still must ask themselves, ‘Can you bet on sports in Texas legally yet?’

There are signs of progress, as Texas remains one of the last holdout states to legalise sports betting. Let’s take a closer look at its historical sporting legacies and the stakeholders on both sides of the sports betting debate.

No, not currently – although a bill to legalise online sports betting (HB 1942) did successfully pass the Texas House in 2023.

So, is online betting legal in Texas?

Unfortunately, no. While HB 1942 did make progress, it never made it through the Texan Senate that year. In fact, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, who presides over the State Senate, dismissed the bill outright, arguing it lacked support from Republican senators.

Furthermore, despite the groundswell of public opinion on the matter, Patrick has yet to be swayed, and having been elected to office until at least 2027, his stance on the subject will remain a timely roadblock.

Okay, so is mobile sports betting legal in Texas, then?

No, mobile sports betting is not legal in Texas, either. Again, despite bipartisan support in the House and backing from almost all the major Texas sports franchises, the Senate’s refusal to move forward has halted the introduction of mobile sports betting as well.

Regardless of these political setbacks, the movement is strengthening, and the demands from the public to allow sports wagering are getting louder. There remains hope among supporters that the status of betting in the state may change sooner rather than later.

The Lone Star State has always faced strong opposition to the expansion of gambling, long before the US Supreme Court struck down the federal law that banned sports betting in May 2018. While other states like Florida have opened their doors to sports betting, Texas’ long-standing historic resistance stood firm.

To better appreciate why the question ‘Is sport gambling legal in Texas?’ keeps popping up, you need to understand that this debate has been going on for centuries.

Firstly, gambling has always been met with religious, political, and ideological opposition since the mid-1800s.

Then, in the 1973 overhaul of the Texas Penal Code, gambling or being part of a gambling entity was made explicitly illegal, reinforcing Texas’ status as an anti-gambling state. 

Despite HB 1942’s failure in 2023, there has been growing support from the Texas Sports Betting Alliance, the state’s professional sports teams, and sports betting platforms, including DraftKings and FanDuel, all lobbying for new legalisation. While proponents point to New York’s record-breaking sports betting handles and the more than $1 billion in tax revenue recorded in 2024, state legislators in Texas have remained defiant.

So much so that in early 2025, twelve newly elected GOP House members signed a letter stating they would oppose any expansion of gambling in the state. In doing so, they reinforced the number of incumbent representatives in the House already against the measure, taking the wind out of supporters’ sails until 2027 at the earliest.

Surprisingly, there is an exception to the blanket ban on wagering on sports. Horse and greyhound racing are both legal. However, all betting must take place at licensed tracks throughout the state, such as Lone Star Park and Retama Park.

While Texans may need to look elsewhere –such as online offshore sportsbooks – to bet on sports, they remain as sports-crazed as ever, thanks in part to the state’s abundance of championship-winning teams, notably:

While sports betting may be banned in Texas, it hasn’t prevented sportsbooks from partnering with several major Lone Star State franchises. These include the Houston Astros, the Dallas Stars, and even MLS team Austin FC, all teaming up with BetMGM, PrizePicks and Jackpocket, and PointsBet, respectively.

Although the prospect of sports betting in Texas may seem remote, there is hope—granted, it is complicated and slow-moving. 

Outside of the legislative opposition, the other primary cause for delay remains that the Texas Legislature only meets in odd-numbered years. The consequence is that, having failed to progress the bill in 2025, sports betting will not be considered again until 2027.

Nonetheless, supporters remain resolute that Texans should have the right to vote on the issue themselves. This would take the form of a constitutional amendment, such as House Joint Resolution 102; however, while this also passed the House in 2023, it never reached a Senate vote.

Legislatively speaking, for the rules to change now, the pathway is clear and would require the following:

Though it may seem unlikely and will require a softening of GOP senators’ stances on the matter, should sports betting ever be legalised, the Texan sports wagering market is projected to be one of the most lucrative in the US.

So, as expanded sports betting remains prohibited in Texas and with the mid-term elections set for 2026, there is scope for political opposition to turn, and the legislative powers may become more favourable.

However, under Lt. Governor Patrick’s leadership and with GOP Senate members opposing any changes, legal sports gambling and wagering in the state remain unlikely for now.

Until then, Texans will continue to support their beloved sports teams. While some residents may choose to cross state lines to place wagers, the door is firmly shut for at least a couple more years.