Alaska Online Sports Betting

Sports betting is illegal in Alaska (online or land-based) and overall, Alaska is not a gambling-friendly state. Not only are the online wagering options very few-and-far between, but so are the land-based betting options. Alaska has no physical casinos, no horse racing tracks, no state lottery, nor any poker rooms.

For those looking for online sports betting options in the U.S. most northern state, the only legal option for Alaskans is Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS). There was some movement on the legislation of sports betting in Alaska in 2020, but neither chamber of the legislature followed the lead of then-Governor Mike Dunleavy.

DFS and some limited forms of betting on dog-sled races and charitable gaming are the only ways for sports bettors, and gamblers in general, in the state of Alaska to enjoy their favorite pastime legally. Some Tribal establishments calling themselves ‘casinos’ sell pull-tab tickets and offer occasional charitable games like bingo, but Alaska is one of five states without a state lottery.

Visit our Alaskan online gambling page for More information on the state's online casino and other gambling Laws.

In Alaska, there is a 5% sales tax on the sale of pull-tabs only.

Federal taxes for large DFS wins over $600 may possibly apply (depending on your circumstances). Check with your tax account if you win big on DFS in Alaska.

The Last Frontier State has varied ages for its gaming options. DFS is offered at the age of 18 as in many other states, while other forms of betting require the player to be a little older according the table below

Alaska has no land-based racetracks or sportsbooks. Other than DFS, the closest thing to race or sports betting in Alaska you can find in Alaska is a charity gambling opportunity.

The charity gambling opportunity usually consists of betting on a fishing contest or guessing the correct finishing time of a ‘dog mushing race’. The closest guess usually wins a prize, and the profits of the event must go to charity.

Being a sports bookmaker in Alaska is illegal and, with the lack of any tracks, there are probably not too many people aspiring to the role.

The only way open to skirt Alaska’s strict sports betting laws banning most types of sports betting is via the charity gaming laws which allow for some quirky bet types such as when the first crane of Summer will arrive, how many cans of salmon will pass through a port during fishing season or on the timing of dog mushing in the State.

That said, in February 2020, Gov. Mike Dunleavy proposed Senate Bill No. 188 and House Bill No. 246, that would both seek to;

• Create an Alaskan Lottery Corporation.
• Allow for that corporation to conduct sports betting style lottery games, including via the internet.

However, the legislature never debated nor put the bills up for a vote. Without any professional sports team and being one of the least-populated states in the country, Alaska won’t receive the same lobbying efforts seen in other states. It may take awhile for the conditions may be ripe to introduce an online sports betting like the NJ online sports betting sites, or perhaps even the casino-less model of Tennessee.

Federal U.S. lawmakers have decided that Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) are exempt from any Federal gambling bans. At the Federal level at least, DFS is determined to be contest of skill, rather than a gambling game of random chance.

Alaska did not do an extensive look into how DFS fits into its own laws, so DFS companies are able to accept entries from Alaska.

As stated previously, sports betting and eSports betting is still unavailable in the Last Frontier. When sports betting does become legal for players in the state, eSports betting could quickly become a viable avenue for Alaska’s residents to win a few dollars, and the state to earn valuable additional revenue. However, what exactly are ‘eSports’?

eSports – short for electronic sports – is the umbrella term for organized, competitive gaming which has exploded in popularity over the past decade. Organized eSports events can bring in up to 40 million viewers in the U.S. alone – that’s a higher viewership than the NBA finals, the World Series or even the Oscars.

There are digital versions of real-life sports – like football simulator FIFA. However, most of the top titles are first person shooters or multiplayer fantasy games like Call of Duty, Counter-Strike and League-of-Legends.

Most spectators watch from home but eSports competitions attract tens-of-thousands of people to stadiums across the world, and eSports competitions have been transformed into global betting events with the advent of live streaming technology. Developed sports betting markets across the planet offer a range of betting markets across all major eSports tournaments through national and international sportsbooks

Watch this site for updates on sports betting becoming legalized in Alaska, in order to take part in legal eSports betting in the state.

Horse Racing Betting is considered to be illegal in the state of Alaska (no horse racing or greyhound racing tracks exist in the state) for all visitors to, and residents of the state of Alaska.

As noted in the ‘Alaska Sports Betting Legislation’ section, the only wagering on racing is on dog mushing races (both distance mushers and spring mushers) across the state. The Iditarod Sled Dog Race has been held annually in Alaska since 1973, raising the profile of the sport not only on the state level, but nationally and internationally. Mushers come to Alaska from all corners of the planet each March for the Iditarod, and now even for the longest distance dog sled race of the year, the 1000-mile Yukon Quest International Dog Sled Race run each February.

There are no horse racing or greyhound racing track facilities in the Alaskan state area.

Off track betting bureaus (OTBs) are not allowed in Alaska. There are carve outs for charitable betting on dog sled races in the Alaskan laws on how fast your favorite dog sledding team completes the course. Licenses for this type of gambling are issued by the Alaskan State Tax Authority under strict guidelines.

Currently, there are no horse racing or greyhound racing online betting options available in Alaska.

Visit our Alaska Online Gambling page for More information on the states Online Casino Laws