Tennessee becomes first to offer online-only sports betting

The Governor of Tennessee did not act on the gambling bill and therefore online-only sports betting was approved in the state.

US.- Tennessee has become the first state in the US to legalise an online-only sports betting industry. While neighbouring states have already legalised -or are rushing to do so – Tennessee still hasn’t approved land-based sports betting.

Governor Bill Lee legalised sports betting even though he declared multiple times that he was against such gambling modality. The Tennessee Sports Gaming Act became law without the Governor’s signature as he did not act on it in the scheduled timeframe. Local laws establish that if a governor doesn’t act on a bill on a specific period, the bill turns into law.

“I am letting House Bill 0001 become law without my signature,” Lee said in a statement. “I do not believe the expansion of gambling through online sports betting is in the best interest of our state, but I do appreciate the General Assembly’s efforts to remove brick and mortar establishments,” he added.

As the state currently doesn’t offer land-based casino gambling, Tennessee will be the first one to offer online-only sports betting in the country. Sportsbook can offer online sports betting services starting July 1, 2019. This is in line with the start of the National Football League (NFL), which kicks off in September.

Moreover, Tennessee is also the first state that requires operators to acquire official league data to settle in-play bets. Other states leave these types of deals to private negotiations. The bill also allows sports leagues to restrict which type of wagers are available to players.