Georgia Sports Betting Officially Won’t Arrive in 2024

The last hope that Georgia sports betting supporters had has fallen by the wayside. In some disappointing news, the last-ditch effort by lawmakers to try and get a Georgia betting bill to move forward wasn’t able to get off the ground as everyone thought. Indeed, Georgia sports betting officially won’t arrive in 2023 after House Bill 237 didn’t make it out of the latest legislative session. This was a chance for big news to arrive.

Instead, once again, officials could not get on the same page regarding the bill. According to a report, this has shut the door of any hopes for legalization to arrive this year. Now, the focus will turn to 2024 for lawmakers, but people all over the Peach State are furious that nothing was able to get done. About a month ago, House Bill 237 was revived at the last second, which had a lot of people excited.

The proponents for Georgia sports betting were ready to try and push things forward, but this latest update is a total heartbreaker. Things are now delayed once again for the betting efforts, as the earliest it could arrive would be ’24. However, just like in Florida if the appeals court doesn’t side in their favor, there’s a chance that legal betting may not arrive for Georgia sports fans until 2025.

This would be a worst-case scenario and something that no one wants to see happen. At the end of the day, Georgia is missing out on a major revenue opportunity without legal sports betting. Illegal activity is only going to continue at a high rate, which is a completely different problem that should worry officials. This is all a mess and one that needs to be cleaned up as soon as possible. Will it? Not likely.

MLB betting could have been massive in Georgia this year

What makes this all even worse for local citizens is that MLB betting could have been massive in Georgia this year. Why? The Atlanta Braves have huge expectations for this season and things are going to be rocking over the next six months or so. There’s no reason to believe that the Braves can’t be in the mix of things when the Fall Classic arrives. Because of that, people would be checking the MLB betting odds on a consistent basis.

Now, though, if anyone wants to place a bet on the Braves in Georgia, they’re going to have to do so through an illegal bookie or off-shore account. This is simply unacceptable and something that has people incredibly frustrated. This could prove to be a huge year for Atlanta on the baseball diamond. Fans will be able to have fun at the game, but there’s no denying that things would be a lot better if betting options were available.

This is another example of Georgia missing its mark here. How many more legislative sessions need to come and go without any kind of change being implemented? At this point last year, the same issue was on the table. Rather than people joining forces together and coming to a proper conclusion, it feels like the sports betting debate continues to be swept under the rug. This is costing the state too much money to count.

We’ve seen the way betting has been formatted in other American states. Places like Ohio, which launched betting on Jan. 1, reported more than $200 million worth of revenue to start the year. That number is simply fantastic. With the Braves being so popular, there’s no doubt in our minds that baseball betting could have been through the roof. Instead, there’s nothing to look forward to this season. Unreal.

Another fall without NFL betting will also be on the way

Unfortunately, this latest news means that another fall without NFL betting will also be on the way for fans in the area. Come on, seriously? The Atlanta Falcons are hoping to have a bounce-back year in 2023 after they disappointed in ’22. The future feels bright for this squad, and plenty of eyes are going to be on the front office to see what they do with their first-round pick in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Speaking of the draft, Falcons fans will be checking the NFL betting odds for that weekend-long event, but again, they won’t be able to place any legal bets. They’ll surely place illegal ones, though, there’s no preventing that. This growing problem isn’t going anywhere for Georgia, with people doing whatever they can to bet on the NFL, MLB, NBA, college sports and more.

With the Falcons in particular, they’d have incredible high betting appeal thanks to the young talent on the roster. Things are only going to get more exciting for them once the draft comes and goes. Betting on the Super Bowl obviously would have been appealing for football fans too, but there’s no point in even bringing that up. Thanks to legislators not working at all to bring sports betting to the state, no legal NFL bets will be on the way at all.

Peter Lewis

Peter Lewis Jr. comes from Mississippi where he and his family spend their days discussing college football, baseball and basketball. He's written sports journalism for years after studying journalism at a local university. Over time, Peter has cultivated extensive knowledge covering sports betting legislation across the country. He closely tracks the latest regulatory developments and provides key insights into their impacts. Peter also offers sharp MLB betting analysis, leveraging stats and trends to identify value on matchups.