The Indiana Gaming Commission has approved betting on the Olympics.
The decision will allow Indiana sports fans to wager on the Paris Summer Olympics, which kick off July 26.
Commissioners also approved betting on the European Football League One and Two and the WNBA All-Star game. The IGC added those events to its sports wagering catalog, which lists all events Hoosiers can bet on.
Paris Games is third Olympics since Hoosier State launched betting
Indiana sports betting currently features a dozen online sportsbooks. There are even more retail sportsbooks throughout the Hoosier State.
The Paris Olympic Games will feature many highly anticipated sporting events. These include men’s and women’s basketball, 3×3 basketball, swimming, and track and field events. New or emerging sports, such as skateboarding, break dancing, and kayaking, will also be spotlighted.
It’s the first time Indiana bettors can wager on these events. However, if regulators had moved sooner, there would have been two opportunities for Olympic betting since the state’s industry launched in 2019.
Indiana sportsbooks couldn’t offer odds for the 2021 Summer Games in Tokyo, which were delayed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, nor for the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.
With the IGC’s move this month, licensed sportsbooks can now offer betting markets on all Olympic games. Indiana operators will have the next Olympic betting opportunity with the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
Indiana joins other midwest states to add the European soccer leagues
EFL League One and Two are soccer circuits that rest just beneath the Premier League in the European football system. They rank as the third and fourth-best league behind the Premier League and The Championship. EFL 2 teams can be promoted to EFL 1, which can move up to the Championship level and, from there, the Premier League.
Indiana was the only state in the Midwest that did not permit wagering on EFL 1 and EFL 2 matches. Nearby Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania already have those leagues in their wagering catalogs.
Viewership and betting should be up this year
There is a precedent for jurisdictions to add Olympic betting to their roster of acceptable sports before the Games. In 2022, Ontario added Olympic events to its approved list prior to the Winter Games in China.
This will be the first Olympic Games to take place with more than half of US states having legal sports betting markets. It’s the fourth Olympic Games for which DraftKings has offered odds.
Given that the Games will take place in Paris, six hours earlier than eastern time in the US, the 2024 Games will likely be more watched and more bet on than the last Games. Beijing is 12 hours ahead of eastern time in the US.