Arkansas (USA): gambling regulation and licensing
Part of United States
- Online sports bettingRegulated
- Online casinoProhibited
- Land-based (reference)Regulated
- Regulator
- Arkansas Racing & Gaming Commission
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Not yet verified
- Last verified
- 30 Aug 2026
Summary
Gambling in Arkansas is regulated by the Racing & Gaming Commission, which sits inside the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration rather than standing as an independent agency. That placement matters: the same department that collects the state's revenue also licenses and supervises the operators paying it, an arrangement more common in the American south than in the licensing authorities Europe would recognise. The governing instrument is Amendment 100 to the Arkansas Constitution, the Arkansas Casino Gaming Amendment of 2018, approved by voters that year. It authorises casino gaming at four licensed casinos, in Crittenden, Garland, Jefferson and Pope counties, and gives the Commission the power to issue and renew those licences. The detail that decides the online position is in the definition: Amendment 100 defines casino gaming to include accepting wagers on sporting events. Because sports betting sits inside the casino licence rather than under a separate statute, the Commission was able to amend its rules in early 2022 to let licensed casinos take wagers statewide through their own mobile apps, without any new legislation. Online sports betting is therefore lawful in Arkansas and runs through the four casino licensees. Online casino is not authorised, and the statewide remote permission granted in 2022 covers sports wagering only.
Key facts
- Regulator
- Arkansas Racing & Gaming Commission
- Regulator type
- Sub-national body
- Headline tax
- Not yet verified
- Licence required
- Not yet verified
- Minimum age
- Not yet verified
- Tax base
- Not yet verified
Legal framework
Primary statutes
Amendment 100 to the Arkansas Constitution, the Arkansas Casino Gaming Amendment of 2018
- Year
- 2018
- In force
- Yes
- Summary
- Approved by voters in 2018. Authorises casino gaming at four licensed casinos in Crittenden, Garland, Jefferson and Pope counties, defines casino gaming to include wagers on sporting events, and gives the Arkansas Racing Commission the power to issue and renew casino licences and to enforce the amendment.
Secondary instruments
Arkansas Racing Commission rules on casino gaming
- Year
- 2022
- In force
- Yes
- Summary
- Amended in early 2022 to permit licensed casinos to accept sports wagers statewide through their own mobile applications, which is the mechanism by which online sports betting became lawful in Arkansas without separate legislation.
Advertising
- Advertising permitted
- No
- Affiliate rules
- Affiliates are not separately licensed. There is no licensed competitive online operator to promote lawfully.
Restrictions
- Arkansas has no licensed online gambling market, so there is no competitive licensed operator whose products may be advertised.
- Promotion of offshore online operators to residents has no lawful basis.
- Advertising rules therefore follow the underlying position on what may lawfully be offered, rather than a separate state advertising code for online gambling.
Sources
- Racing & Gaming Commission
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration
Tier 1Accessed 27 Aug 2026 - Casino Gaming Section
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration
Tier 1Accessed 30 Aug 2026