South Carolina Online Horse Betting

The Palmetto State’s gambling laws are quite restrictive, with no casino gambling (aside from casino cruises operating out of Myrtle Beach), or pari-mutuel wagering. In fact, South Carolina is one of just five states that explicitly bars betting on horse racing.

The only exceptions to what would otherwise be an outright ban are a state lottery and the aforementioned cruises.

South Carolina does host horse racing: the Carolina Cup and Colonial Cup International Steeplechase races at Springdale Race Course in Camden. The events, the first of which is run in the spring and the second in the autumn, typically draw crowds of 60,000 or more, but there is no wagering in 2021.

Interestingly, South Carolina’s laws don’t bar daily fantasy sports betting, at least according to the main operators of such sites, FanDuel.com and DraftKings.com, both of which solicit customers in the state.

But because of the ban on horse racing, no providers of advance deposit wagering, which enables account holders to bet by telephone or  providers do business in South Carolina. The only alternative for residents is unauthorized offshore websites that offer betting on horse racing.