Washington D.C. Casinos

Rachel Elam | September 23, 2020 | Updated on: September 23rd, 2020

Washington D.C. casinos There are no casinos in Washington D.C. and there is limited gambling. Also, and it may be because it is the capital of the United States. It is mostly an urban city without any real estate where they can place racetracks or casino resorts.

The lottery is the only type of legal gambling in Washington D.C. Local drawings are also held multiple times every day. Also, there are three interstate lotto drawings. Lottery and keno terminals are available.

Washington D.C. gambling is non-existent, tough its residents can find casinos nearby. West Virginia and Maryland have casinos and racetracks. Atlantic City is only a three-hour drive away.

Washington D.C. Casinos & Gambling

Year Gambling was Regulated- Lottery (1982)
Estimated Tax Revenue – $84 million
Estimated Gambling Revenue- $225 million
Legal Gambling Age – 18
Online gambling – No forms legal

Types of Online Gambling Allowed

There are no types of legal web gambling in Washington D.C. Horse racing is available online in most of the states, Though not in Washington D.C. The District Lottery doesn’t sell lottery tickets online.

Online gambling sites with poker and sports gambling sites are illegal in Washington D.C. The firms that take that action are uninhibited. Like lottery tickets, the effort to regulate poker online and casino games were canceled.

Daily fantasy sports gambling sites claim that their contests are games of skill and Washington D.C.’s gambling law does not apply.

Popular Casino Games

Casino Games – No
Horses – No
Lottery – Yes

Types of Live Gambling in Washington D.C.

The only type of legal gambling permitted in Washington D.C. is through the District Lottery. Lotto drawings, Scratch-off tickets, keno, and video lottery are legal. Keno is held in every four minutes from 6am to 2am daily. Video lottery terminals are scratch-off tickets in video form. There is no keno or poker games.

The Washington D.C. Lottery controls all charitable gambling. These non-profit groups have to register with the lottery to spread bingo, or raffle drawings and casino nights.

Gambling Laws in Washington D.C.

The District Lottery is the one group that can spread or license gambling. Expansion does not need a citywide referendum. The minimum age to gamble in Washington D.C. is 18 years.

Charities are allowed to spread bingo games and Monte Carlo nights. Non-profit organizations must be in existence for at least a year and based to qualify for bingo and casino nights.

Washington D.C. Gambling History

All kinds of gambling were illegal in Washington D.C. until the year 1982. That is when the District Lottery was launched. To date, the lottery is still the only type of legalized gambling in the District of Colombia. The Lottery oversees charitable gaming, which is insignificant in terms of revenue.

The Washington D.C. City Council approved web poker and casino games as part of the lottery in 2011. It was one week before Black Friday, which placed the three biggest poker sites that accepted Americans –Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and Absolute Poker sold out.

The measure was also attached to a budget and was not debated. Washington D.C. was the first US state to legalize any kind of online gaming in the country beyond horseracing.

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