States / Mississippi / Sports betting
Is sports betting legal in Mississippi?
Yes. In Mississippi, sports betting is legal, with limited online options (as of Oct 12, 2026). Online and in-person betting launched Jul 21, 2018. Operators pay 8% GGR in tax.
| Channel | Status | Launched | Model | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sports (online) | Limited | Jul 21, 2018 | Hybrid | Mobile/online wagering is authorized only on the physical premises of a licensed casino (geofenced apps usable only while on-site), not statewide. The House has passed statewide mobile-wagering bills (e.g., the Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act, H.B. 4074) in multiple sessions through 2026, but the Senate Gaming Committee (chaired by opponents including Sen. David Blount) has killed every Senate companion or House-passed bill to date, often because it became entangled with competing sweepstakes-casino-ban legislation in conference. An initial wagering-account registration must be completed in person at the casino's premises before the account can be used, even though placing wagers afterward is app-based. Miss. Code Ann. § 75-76-5; Miss. Admin. Code Title 13, Part 9 [1],[2],[3] |
| Sports (retail) | Live | Jul 21, 2018 | Hybrid | Mississippi did not pass new sports-betting legislation after Murphy v. NCAA; it instead relied on a 2017 amendment (H.B. 967) that broadened the Gaming Control Act's "sports pool" definition to include wagers on collegiate and professional sporting/athletic events, then had the MGC adopt sports-wagering regulations under its existing rulemaking authority (approved for comment May 17, 2018; effective ~30 days after final adoption). Legal wagering at MGC-licensed casinos began July 21, 2018. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians separately authorized sports betting at Pearl River Resort and Bok Homa Casino in 2018 under its own gaming-commission regulations and Class III compact. Miss. Code Ann. § 75-76-5 ("sports pool" definition, as amended by H.B. 967 (2017)); Miss. Code Ann. § 75-76-33(3); Miss. Admin. Code Title 13, Part 9 [4],[5],[6],[3] |
Tax rate
| Rate | Since | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 8% GGR (online) | Jul 21, 2018 | Same graduated casino gross-revenue tax applies to on-premises mobile sports-wagering revenue; no statewide online product exists to tax separately.[7] |
| 8% GGR (retail) | Jul 21, 2018 | Sports-wagering revenue is taxed as ordinary casino gross gaming revenue under the same graduated § 75-76-177 schedule (top rate 8% applies once a licensee's total monthly gaming revenue, including sports wagering, exceeds $134,000); secondary sources describe this simply as "8% state tax" on sports wagering specifically.[7] |
Rules
- Minimum age to place a sports wager
- 21 · Same 21-and-over requirement applies to sports wagering as a form of gaming "authorized under this chapter" per Miss. Code Ann. § 75-76-155(1)(a) (Title 75, Chapter 76 covers sports wagering as well as casino gaming); a narrower 2026 bill (HB 4074) that would have added an explicit under-21 online sports-wagering ban died in committee 2026-03-17, implying the general casino-age statute is relied on for sports wagering today rather than a sports-specific provision.[8]
- Wagering on college sports allowed at all
- Yes · The 2017-amended "sports pool" definition in § 75-76-5 covers wagers on "collegiate or professional sporting events or athletic events."[2]
- Wagering on in-state college teams allowed
- Yes · Mississippi Gaming Commission regulations list the specific wager types books may not accept, and do not exclude wagers on in-state college teams from the allowed "collegiate sporting or athletic events" category.[3]
- Individual college player prop bets allowed
- Yes · Mississippi Gaming Commission regulations bar wagers placed by or on behalf of a coach or participant in an event, but do not restrict prop-style wagers about a player's or team's performance.[3]?
- New online accounts must be created in person
- Yes · Mississippi Gaming Commission regulations require that "an initial verification of the account must be done in-person by a patron at the licensee's premises before the acceptance of any wager that will utilize a Wagering account," including for mobile/app-based wagering.[3]
- Online sports wagering available statewide (not tethered to premises)
- No · Mobile/online sports wagering apps function only while the bettor is physically on a licensed casino's premises (geofenced); Mississippi has no statewide mobile sports-wagering product.[1]
- Operators must use official league data for some bets
- No · Mississippi Gaming Commission regulations require only that an event's outcome be "confirmed from reliable sources satisfactory to the Executive Director," without mandating the use of data purchased from a sports governing body or official league source.[3]
- Summary of prop-bet restrictions (e.g. no in-game player props)
- No bets on non-collegiate amateur sports (other than Olympic events), no wagers placed by or on behalf of a coach or participant in the event being wagered on, and no wagers on the outcome of an election for public office.[3]
All gambling laws in Mississippi → · Sports betting in every state →
Sources
- Mississippi Online Sports Betting Dead For Another Year · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; reports the 2026 death of H.B. 4074/H.B. 1581 and SB 2249 in the Senate.
- Mississippi Legislature Returns to Mobile Sports Wagering and Sweepstakes Policy · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary (law-firm) source; describes the 2017 "sports pool" definition amendment to §§ 75-76-5 and 75-76-33(3) and 2026 bill landscape.
- Mississippi Gaming Commission Regulations, Title 13, Part 9 — Racebooks and Sports Pools · retrieved Oct 11, 2026
Text extracted via pdftotext after the PDF's embedded text layer did not render through the fetch tool's HTML converter. Confirms this regulation is Title 13, Part 9 of the Mississippi Administrative Code; the sports_retail and sports_online verticals previously miscited it as Part 15, which is actually the Commission's separate Fantasy Contests regulation, corrected here.
- Mississippi Casinos: Legal Sports Betting Begins July 21, 2018 · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; reports the July 21, 2018 launch date and PASPA background.
- What Has to Happen Before the First Sports Wager in Mississippi? · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; describes MGC's May 17, 2018 proposed-rule release and the ~June 21, 2018 final-approval timeline with a 30-day effective-date lag.
- Mississippi Sports Betting Could Go Live At Tribal Casinos Quickly · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; reports the Choctaw Gaming Commission's 2018 regulatory amendment and sportsbook opening at Pearl River Resort/Bok Homa Casino.
- Mississippi Task Force Details Tax Revenue from Online Sports Betting · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; describes the 8% state tax figure applied to sports-wagering revenue.
- Mississippi Casino Restricts Visitors To Age 21-Plus · retrieved Oct 10, 2026
Secondary source only; describes a 2022 Bay St. Louis casino becoming 21+ and references the statewide minimum gaming age.