Sports Betting in Los Angeles, CA

Here is our quick Los Angeles (CA) sports betting overview. We keep you updated on the legislation, betting sites, online apps, Nebraska’s casinos and gambling locations in 2019/2020.

LA Sports Betting Legal Status Overview

Los Angeles, California, has a history of gambling going all the way back to the famous Gold Rush of the 1840’s. There exists today a healthy gambling enterprise in place, including horse racing, tribal casinos, poker rooms and lottery games. LA is looking to the future though and has already enacting a bill to allow betting on horse races over the internet, with bills come through looking to regulate online poker rooms, too.

There was plenty of gambling during the Gold Rush years, though this was completely unregulated. Since this State’s inauguration in 1850 there have been card rooms spreading poker and other player against player games.  It was not until 1993 that other forms of gambling legislation started to become law.

The current Statutes are very detailed, including operating gambling devices (widely defined), housing gambling games or even promoting them – the core definition involves playing of certain games:

“Every person who deals, plays, or carries on, opens, or causes to be opened, or who conducts, either as owner or employee, whether for hire or not, any game of faro, monte, roulette, lansquenet, rouge et noire, rondo, tan, fan-tan, seven-and-a-half, twenty-one, hokey-pokey, or any banking or percentage game played with cards, dice, or any device, for money, checks, credit, or other representative of value…” (From section 330).

Sports betting in LA is possible but only betting on horse races is actually allowed, with on-track gambling and also from more than 100 permitted outlets, and more recently online too.

Is it legal to bet online in CA?

There are several betting sites and sportsbooks available for residents of Los Angeles. Yes, you can bet online on, for example, Super Bowl, but at the offshore bookmakers. There are no state laws in place in California that prohibit residents from placing bets on sporting events through a legal offshore online sportsbook. For people who don’t like to make the 270-mile drive to Las Vegas on a regular basis, this is the best wagering option available online.

Will California legalize sports betting? Proposals to change this don’t look too good. There is much consensus that LA has one of the most progressive and liberal gambling environments in the US. A possible move to online is being closely followed by software companies, as well as the bricks and mortar establishments, who hope to be in line for a license.

Mobile Betting Apps in Los Angeles

Placing wagers via your mobile device with any of these licensed offshore online sportsbooks in California (Los Angeles) is perfectly legal. You can choose to download an app into your smartphone or tablet from the sportsbook of your choice, or you can simply call up the sportsbook’s website on your mobile device. Most sites are now very mobile friendly since that’s the No. 1 method that people are using these days to make wagers.

Los Angeles Sportsbooks

You can bet online in Los Angeles, but not on sports. Daily fantasy wagering is legal in California, and you can play these games at FanDuel.com and DraftKings.com. As well, you can access these betting websites from any licensed offshore sportsbook on your PC or laptop to provide you with opportunities to wager on the sport of your choice.

Los Angeles Betting Locations

There are over 60 casinos located in the state of California near Los Angeles. The Commerce Hotel and Casino opened in 1983 and is situated eight miles south of LA in Commerce, Calif. There are also some 90 licensed card rooms throughout the state.

Horse-racing is a very popular sport in Los Angeles and is the only sport that you can physically bet on legally in the state. Hollywood Park combines a racetrack with a casino. Santa Anita Park will play host to the 2019 Breeders’ Cup World Championship races. Los Alamitos is another prominent LA-area horse track.

For decades, sports bettors in Los Angeles have worn a groove into the pavement along I-115 North. That’s the route to Las Vegas, and people desiring to wager legally on sports were left with no choice but to make like Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau in the movie Swingers and head to Vegas, baby.

Slowly but steadily, that landscape is changing. In late June of 2019, a new bill was submitted to the California legislation that will once again seek to pave the way toward legalized sports gambling in the state. An original attempt by Californians For Sports Betting, a public sports gambling support group, failed to gain enough signatures to get the matter put on the 2020 ballot for a referendum on whether to make sports betting legal.

The current hope is that legalization of sports betting will be in place sometime in 2021. But they can anticipate a strong anti-legalization lobby effort from the heads of native tribes who currently operate the casinos in California.

Top sports betting blogs in California

Pechanga.net – A site that caters specifically to the California betting scene, this is the ideal place to stay on top of the developments as the state moves toward legalized sports betting. Regular articles go in-depth into the issues surrounding this debate. Featured bloggers like Dave Palermo and Victor Rocha have been following the California gaming scene for decades and are well-connected to industry insiders.

Professional Teams in Los Angeles

After trading for All-Star center Anthony Davis the Lakers (3-1) are now among the favorites (and the favorite on some sites) to win the 2020 NBA title. The Clippers (6-1) should also be a playoff team in 2020 and have a chance in the West. The Dodgers (4-1) have the best record in Major League Baseball and are co-favorites to not just get back to the World Series for the third straight year, but win it this time. The Rams (8-1) went to Super Bowl 53 and are among the favorites to go back to Super Bowl 54. Watch out for the Chargers(14-1), though, who could be a Super Bowl 2020 threat.   

Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB)

The Dodgers are one of baseball’s most traditional franchises. They’ve appeared in 20 World Series, tied with the San Francisco Giants for most appearances by a National League team. That total is second only to the New York Yankees (40) but with a 6-14 slate in the Fall Classic, the Dodgers’ .300 winning percentage puts them 21st overall in success rate among MLB teams.

Los Angeles Angels (MLB)

They could be known as the team to be renamed later – again and again. Born as the Los Angeles Angels as an American League expansion franchise in 1961, they became the California Angels in 1965. In 1997, another change saw them become the Anaheim Angels. In 2002, they won their only World Series under this name. In 2013, the team again got a new handle, christened the Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim. The “Of Anaheim” part of the name was quietly dropped and they’ve been again known as the Los Angeles Angels since 2016.

Los Angeles Galaxy (MLS)

Best known as the side that lured England international David Beckham to play in North America, the Galaxy have won five MLS Cup titles.

Los Angeles Clippers (NBA)

Often viewed as the weaker sister to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Clippers share residence at the Staples Center with the Lakers but don’t share their co-tenants legacy of success. Not only have the Clippers never won an NBA title, but they also haven’t even played in the NBA Finals.

Los Angeles Lakers (NBA)

The Lakers have appeared in a record 31 NBA Finals and won 16 titles, second only to the Boston Celtics. The Lakers were the most recent team to win three NBA titles in a row from 2000-02.

Los Angeles Chargers (NFL)

They began as the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFL, but after one season, relocated to become the San Diego Chargers. They joined the NFL in 1970 via the AFL-NFL merger. In 2017, they returned home and once again became the Los Angeles Chargers.

Los Angeles Rams (NFL)

A vagabond franchise, they began as the Cleveland Rams from 1936-45 before moving to LA. They were the Los Angeles Rams until 1994, when the team uprooted to become the St. Louis Rams. Stunningly in 2016, they journeyed back to LA and played in Super Bowl LIII, losing 13-3 to the New England Patriots.

Anaheim Ducks (NHL)

Originally owned by Disney, they were branded The Mighty Ducks Of Anaheim after the popular Disney hockey film trilogy. Shortened to the Anaheim Ducks after Disney sold the franchise, the Ducks won the Stanley Cup in 2007.

Los Angeles Kings (NHL)

An NHL expansion franchise in 1967, the Kings did little of note until 1988, when they engineered the greatest trade in league history, adding Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers. LA played in the 1993 Stanley Cup final but wouldn’t win a Cup until 2012, following up with another Cup triumph in 2014.

Photo by Sterling Davis