Florida Betting Sites 2024

Top Florida bookmaker sites

Gambling guide

Introduction into the Florida gambling industry - who are the top Florida sportsbooks?

Florida’s gambling industry has a long history and many different influences that helped to create it. It got its start in the 1920s and 1930s as the state tried to climb out of the Great Depression and make it to being profitable once again. Gambling got started with horse betting and gambling clubs and later spread to the sport of Jai-Alai and to slot machines in the 1930s. As the decades passed slots and sports wagering was no longer legal, but Indian-run casinos opened up and started the push toward traditional casinos and cruise gambling as well. The gambling industry today is limited to bingo, table games, and horse racing, but it’s spread out across 137 different casinos, making Florida home to one of the most extensive casino networks around the country.

Land-based sports betting legal situation - the top Florida sportsbooks

There is no legal sports betting in Florida other than horse racing. There are several tracks throughout the state, and horse racing has been a popular activity since the 1920s throughout the sunshine state. There are many horse race tracks throughout the state, but new laws have been released limiting the amenities, along with the kinds of Florida bookmaker and the features offered at horse race tracks. Many gamblers are focusing more on the casino games at the Indian reservations today and more and more are moving away from the horse race tracks. Sports betting in Florida is becoming more and more limited, leaving gamblers to look for other activities to wager on instead of looking for the best FL bookies.

Online Sports Betting Legal Situation - Who are the best Florida sportsbooks?

There is no support for online sports betting in Florida and you won't find any top Florida betting sites to choose from. Gamblers that prefer to wager online don’t have legal options to work with in the state of Florida and instead have to consider using Daily Fantasy Leagues and other forms of indirect wagering instead. While there are plenty of online options for that sort of wagering, that’s not quite the same as the sports wagering that some other states have to offer instead. Gamblers looking to place online sports bets in Florida at the best FL bookies will be disappointed at the options provided. There isn’t anything that matches actual sports betting online like what is offered in states like New Jersey.

Mobile Sports Betting Gambling Situation - The top Florida betting sites for your mobile bets

Just as there is no support for the best florida sportsbooks, there isn’t an option for mobile wagering in the sunshine state either. The top Florida sportsbooks simply don't exist for mobile betting. All the wagering that takes place in Florida must happen in person at local casinos and gambling establishments, not the top Florida sportsbooks. Players that want to place wagers must go to one of the many different Indian-owned establishments to place their bets. This prevents the need for advanced location services and tools to track bettors locations before placing wagers. It also means that gamblers must be prepared to travel to a local casino to place a wager. Fortunately, there are many of them to choose from around Florida, unlike the top Florida sportsbooks.

Online Sports Betting Operator Licensing Process - Are the best Florida bookies licensed?

Without an online sports betting industry, there is no licensing process in place for online sports betting in Florida. In other states there is an extensive auditing process and many steps that the best Florida bookies would have to go through in order to legally offer wagering services online to residents of the state. That’s not how things work in Florida. There was never legislation passed to make online sports betting in the state legal, which means that there is no regulating body watching over the best Florida bookies. There are extensive regulations that keep track of in-person casinos throughout the state though.

You also won't find a real online casino Florida. You can play online casino games with a social casino site, where you'll use virtual money, but the real money versions are not legal. The land-based casinos must meet strict licensing requirements, which including an auditing process that looks at the machines and the games throughout the site to verify that they are fair and functioning properly. Each casino is checked out annually to continue meeting the licensing requirements properly. There are fees and annual certifications that must be maintained to stay licensed in the state of Florida. All of these measures help to make gambling in Florida safer and more reliable and something that gamblers can count on.

History of gambling in Florida - Before the arrival of the best Florida bookies

The Florida Gambling industry has a long history that really got its start in the1920’s and 1930’s. In the 20’s Hialeah park race track opened up along with gambling clubs like Cap’s Place. In the 30’s gambling gained even more steam with Jai-Alai and then slot machines. There was heavy betting on Jai-Alai for decades in Miami and surrounding areas, and slot machines were an accepted wagering device up through 1973.

There were few wagering options between ’73 and ’79, but in 1979 Indian bingo halls became legal, which lead the way to casinos, cruise ships and more for the extensive gambling industry that’s in Florida today. There have been many different political forces working to legalize gambling throughout Florida over the years. Today casino wagering is legal in Indian casinos, but that’s mostly limited to table games and bingo. There are a total of 137 casinos throughout the state, giving it more casinos than most other states around the country even if they are more limited in many ways. Sadly there's nothing in the way of the best Florida bookies to choose from.

Florida Sports Betting FAQ - All about the top Florida betting sites

Responsible online gambling

Compulsive gambling and gambling addiction can be real problems in any state, including Florida where wagering is possible in more than 130 different casinos throughout the state. The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling is available to help those that suffer from gambling addiction get over the problem and prevent themselves from risking their money too much. There is a helpline available and Florida has laws in place that allow players to prevent themselves from having access to the casinos throughout Florida voluntarily. Gamblers that have problems with a gambling addiction can keep themselves out of the casinos effectively for good or for a specific period of time that they choose.

Daily fantasy sports (DFS): win with expertise

While many other forms of sports wagering are not permitted in Florida, Daily Fantasy Sports remain in a gray area that keeps them somewhat legal to take part in. There aren’t currently any laws prohibiting this form of wagering, which allows sports enthusiasts to place sports bets on the games that they love at a Florida bookmaker. Daily Fantasy Sports are fantasy-league style wagering games that let players create a team of mixed players from different teams. This fantasy team is closely tracked to see how each of the different players performs. The better the players perform in their real games, the greater the number of points the fantasy team generates.

Gamblers join betting pools with their fantasy teams, and the gambler that does the best walks away with the money in the pool. Many of these sites have thousands of different players all in the same betting pool. The top prizes for these pools can grow to massive levels, making daily fantasy sports betting into an exciting practice that many gamblers thoroughly enjoy. Fantasy Sports Teams are highly entertaining and one of the best ways to take part in sports betting in Florida. See the graphic below to learn more about Daily Fantasy Sports and why so many people enjoy playing it. Try it today and you might develop a love for fantasy sports.

Social Casinos: If you want to play, but not for real

For all the Florida residents out there, that want to experience sports betting and casino-style wagering without the risk of losing money, social casinos are a fun alternative. The gamblers that are worried about questions like “is sports betting legal in Florida?” won’t have to worry about that when participating at casual casinos. That’s because the casinos don’t actually use real money for players that are wagering. Instead the gamblers place bets using play money that’s given to everyone at the beginning.

As players win, they will amass more play money and can go up against more skilled players. Those that lose their play money can get new play money, later on, to continue playing at the casino over time. Casual casinos are a lot of fun, and there are casual sportsbooks as well. These facilities give players a chance to practice different types of gambling before playing for real money. When looking for chances for sports betting in Florida, often other than the fantasy leagues social sportsbooks are likely the best option available. There are many different social casinos and sportsbooks online and they are free to make use of. People looking to gamble without actually risking real money should give one of them a try just to see how enjoyable they are to play around with.