Louisiana Sports Betting Launches at the Paragon Casino Resort on Wednesday

This past Wednesday, October 6th, saw the launch of Louisiana sports betting. The retail sportsbook run by Betfred Sports at the Paragon Casino Resort was the location of the first legal sports bets. Louisiana now has legal sports betting on tribal lands.

The Paragon Casino is owned by the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe. But, it was not among the twenty casinos and racinos that were referenced by name in the Louisiana sportsbook legislation. However, due to the fact that the casino is on tribal land, it does not require regulatory approval from the state.

On the Tuesday before the launch, Betfred made the announcement that it would begin taking sports bets at the Paragon Casino Resort in Marksville. Marksville is located around three hours northwest of New Orleans. Sports betting at the casino officially launched at 3 p.m. CT.

The Chairman of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, Marshall Pierite indicated his excitement for the sports betting launch. He is excited about the tribe’s partnership with Betfred Sports, their ability to bring sports betting to the state, and the success the move could mean for the Paragon Casino Resort. He wants to help make the resort a first-class destination when it comes to gaming and vacationing for Central Louisiana.

At this time, commercial casinos in Louisiana cannot yet launch sports betting. These casinos are still waiting for Ronnie Johns, the Chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board to sign off. Johns indicated he was a bit surprised by the move from Betfred and the Paragon Casino Resort. He had known they were building out their sportsbook operation, but did not hear about the launch until just a few hours prior to its occurrence.

He also indicated that even though he did not have much notice, the move was legal. And, he mentioned that they are close to reaching a deal to have some sports betting licenses take effect in the state. He is hoping to have some good news to release on that front soon.

Johns recently relayed that Hurricane Ida was to blame for some of the delay in the licensing process for Louisiana sports betting. Instead of being able to focus on sports betting license reviewing, many of their assigned Louisiana State Police troopers had to shift their focus to the recent hurricane efforts.

The current Louisiana sports betting legislation gives each of the state’s twenty racinos and casinos a license. And, this includes up to two online skins.

Operators had been hoping for a launch date of October 1st, but that has come and gone. Chairman Johns has stated that regulators in the state are now 100 percent focused on this effort and that they are moving as fast as they can. However, he stopped short of announcing a new potential launch date.

But, he does plan to sign sports betting licenses as soon as an applicant is recommended to him by the state police. And, he indicated that online operators are several months behind retail sportsbooks.

The retail sportsbook from Betfred and the Paragon Casino Resort is called The Draft Room. It is a sportsbook in the style of Las Vegas. The retail sportsbook has tables as well as bar seating, one hundred and twelve televisions, and betting kiosks and betting counters.

Marshall Sampson, Sr., the Paragon Casino General Manager, hopes to see visitors from all over the state at the new retail sportsbook. He feels that they have a first-class venue and sports betting platform. And, he hopes that the Paragon Casino Resort will become a major destination for sports betting and even sports viewing in the state.

Betfred, which is based in the United Kingdom, has launched in Colorado, Iowa, and Pennsylvania in addition to its new retail sportsbook in Louisiana. At this time, it is still awaiting regulatory approval in Nevada, Arizona, Virginia, as well as Washington.

Written by our US sports betting industry expert, Allie Nelson. You can learn more about Allie's expertise here.