Gambling in Louisiana got a lot more interesting Friday with the launch of the state’s mobile sports betting market.

Louisiana went live with retail sports betting on Oct. 31, 2021, at Harrah’s casinos in New Orleans and Bossier City. Since then, notable sportsbooks operators like Penn National Gaming, DraftKings and FanDuel started taking wagers at retail sportsbooks.

But mobile is what bettors in Louisiana have been waiting for and online sportsbooks went live at 8 a.m. Friday.

Gov. John Bel Edwards signed sports betting legislation into law last summer. It allows each of Louisiana’s 20 licensed casinos to receive up to two mobile betting “skins.”

Mobile sports betting joined retail casinos and sportsbooks as gambling options in Louisiana. Real money online casinos have not been legalized in Louisiana.

Here are some things to look for now that mobile sports betting is live in 55 of the state’s 64 parishes that voted to legalize sports betting in November 2020:

LA Bettors will have Options

Here are some of the operators that launched Friday in Louisiana:

• BetMGM Louisiana is live. Adam Greenblatt, CEO of BetMGM, said in a news release that "we’re thrilled that the BetMGM Sportsbook is one of the first mobile sports betting apps to launch in Louisiana, just in time for this weekend’s NFL playoffs. We know that many Louisianians visit our retail sportsbooks in Mississippi, and we’re pleased to provide another betting option that rewards customers with one-of-a-kind experiences not available on any other platform.”
• Caesars Louisiana Sportsbook also launched Friday. “This is an opportunity we’ve been working toward for a long time,” Eric Hession, co-president of Caesars Digital, said in a news release before the launch.
• DraftKings Louisiana said it welcomes mobile betting in Louisiana after launching its retail sportsbook at the Golden Nugget Casino in Lake Charles. ““There have been several DraftKings developments in Louisiana in the last year alone, including the debut of our daily fantasy products and retail sportsbook, and this latest online sportsbook launch is another significant milestone,” Matt Kalish, co-founder and president of DraftKings North America, said in the release.
• FanDuel Louisiana has five retail sportsbooks open at Boyd Gaming facilities in the state. Now the FanDuel Sportsbook app is live.
• Richard Schwartz, chief executive officer of Rush Street Interactive, said the BetRivers Louisiana app is “thrilled to welcome Louisiana and its avid sports fans to the growing RSI and BetRivers communities.”
• Penn National Gaming's Barstool Sportsbook is also live in Louisiana..

Sports Betting Numbers Should Soar

We don’t expect Louisiana to put up New York-like numbers, but they will be a big improvement from the December retail sportsbook figures in Louisiana.

The retail sportsbooks at Louisiana casinos had a total handle of $39.5 million in December, according to state figures. That was an increase of $8 million from November, the first full month retail sports betting was live.

Mobile bettors in Louisiana will be able to wager on this weekend’s NFL conference championship games and the Super Bowl on Feb. 13. And then March Madness hits, so the numbers will only go up.

And there will be numerous offers and promotions available for first-time bettors in Louisiana.