If you are a lover of casinos then you are in the right place! You will find all the relevant info about gambling in Alabama in our full guide! Read about Alabama's poker laws and legal system here. This review covers casino gambling and legal Alabama poker sites as well as the history of Alabama gambling.

Poker players in Alabama generally have a lot of questions when it comes to the gambling laws of their state, especially whether it’s legal to play online poker in Alabama and where you can play. In this guide to gambling in Alabama, we’re going to cover legal online poker options in AL and then survey a host of interesting facts and resources related to gambling in the state of Alabama.

Update as of 2019

This section is an updated version of the original article. While the the information on this page is correct, some new legislation might be in effect since this page was originally written. We’ve left the orginal article in tact below the new information.

Alabama State Lottery Bill

In May 2015, Alabama State Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh pushed for a state lottery. Del Marsh and other proponents argued that a state lottery would be worth $400 million a year to the Alabama Treasury. The Tourism & Marketing Committee approved the bill by a 5-3 vote. The same bill would have allowed the state’s 4 racetracks to have casino gaming. Sen. Bill Beasley, a Democrat from Clayton, called for a voice vote on the bill.

The next month, the State Senate killed the bill by Del Marsh in a wider vote. This led Former Auburn University football coach Pat Dye and former Alabama Power Co. President Charles McCrary to join the Alabama Jobs Coalition, which pushed for a state lottery and racino gambling. Pat Dye and Charles McCrary claimed not only that the bill would generate $400 million in state revenues each year, but it also would create 11,000 new permanent jobs.

Over the course of the summer of 2015, the Alabama Jobs Coalition continued to publicize the bill. In September 2015, Huntsville Sen. Paul Sanford asked the Senate Tourism and Marketing Committee to consider a lottery bill which would approve a state lottery. Under terms of the bill, Alabama would join the Powerball and Mega Million multi-state lottery associations. Del Marsh declined to have the committee vote on the bill, effectively ending any chance of a lottery bill being passed in 2015.

In February 2016, the Alabama House Economic Development and Tourism Committee voted to approve a lottery bill which was supported by Rep. Alan Harper, R-Northport. This bill would approve a state lottery and participation in the multi-state lottery associations. Funds would be shared between the Education Trust Fund and the General Fund. This stripped-down version of the bill is still being discussed. In Alabama’s upper house, Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh said he would need to see how the funds were allotted before he would say whether he would support the bill or not.

If passed, Alan Harper’s bill would place a lottery referendum on the November 2016 ballot. The likelihood of a lottery passing in Alabama is small, because the state’s leaders have been against such a bill traditionally. Politicians like Rich Wingo and Paul Hicks opposed the bill on social conservative grounds, saying God would not support the state, if gambling were passed. Arnold Mooney opposed the bill on economic conservative grounds, saying such a fundraising method is regressive and it would grow the size of government.

Top Online Poker Sites in Alabama

With a number of sites to choose from, Alabamians have their pick of the litter when it comes to online poker rooms. Based on bonus value and room conditions, we’ve selected the top rooms for Alabama online poker players and listed them here.

All Poker and Gambling Laws by State

• April 26th, 2018

  Poker players in Alabama generally have a lot of questions when it comes to the gambling laws of their state, especially whether it’s legal to play online poker in Alabama and where you can play. In this guide to gambling in Alabama, we’re going to cover legal online poker options

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• In confirmation hearings on Tuesday, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions said he was “shocked” when he learned that the Department of Justice approved online casinos and online poker in a 2011 opinion. The decision paved the way for online gambling legalization in New Jersey, Nevada, and Delaware. Jeff Sessions’s pronouncement is

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• The Alabama State Senate passed a lottery bill last week, setting up a vote in the Alabama House of Representatives on Thursday. The bill passed in the Alabama House by a margin of 64-35, 1 vote more than the 63-vote minimum needed to pass. An initial vote was 61-37, but

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• The Alabama Senate failed to pass a bill this week which would clarify the law on slot machines in non-tribal gaming locations like VictoryLand and GreeneTrack. Sen. Bobby Kingston, a Democrat from Greensboro, sponsored the bill, but it came up 4 votes short of the necessary 21 for passage. Alabama

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In the U.S.A., there are three major laws pertaining to online gambling. One law pertains to online gambling on the whole, while the other two laws that are specifically about sports betting. Even then, one of these laws pertaining to sports betting is solely based on the licensing and creation of sportsbooks in each individual state. We have listed some background to these laws, and we have also included the text of the law on our page.

The major law pertaining to online gambling in the United States is the UIGEA, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. The UIGEA 'prohibits gambling businesses from knowingly accepting payments in connection with the participation of another person in a bet or wager that involves the use of the Internet and that is unlawful under any federal or state law.' This has effectively made it illegal for gambling sites and payment processors to accept these payments. Though the title of the law makes it sound like online gambling is illegal, it does not. Even state attorneys have admitted that online gambling is not illegal for the players, instead this law has effectively clumped the money laundering into online gambling - once again, this is only for payment processors and gambling sites.

Next up we come to the Wire Act of 1961. Written back in the 60's to combat organized crime, the Wire Act states a few things. First, let's look at the wall of text that is this law:

'Whoever being engaged in the business of betting or wagering knowingly uses a wire communication for facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers or any sporting event or contest, or for the transmission of a wire communication which entitles the recipient to receive money or credit as a result of bets or wagers, or for the information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.'

Is Online Betting Legal In Alabama

Since the Wire Act states wire communication, there has been some confusion over whether or not the laws pertain to the Internet. Though the Internet does use wires to transfer information, it had not been invented when the law was written. The Wire Act has also been ruled to only cover sports gambling and nothing more. Casino games and poker games have not been covered by the Wire Act. The courts have not yet determined whether or not there is a ban on online gambling due to this law.

Is Off Track Betting Legal In Alabama

Finally we come to the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. More commonly referred to as the PASPA, or the Bradley Act, this law was written to determine the legality of wagering on sports in the United States. The PASPA has made it so only a few states in the nation can actually host sports lotteries. Oregon, Delaware, Montana and Nevada are the only states who can license anything closely resembling a sports betting scheme. Nevada has taken full advantage of this, while Delaware has done what they can - three game parlays on NFL games. Oregon and Montana have not regulated any sportsbooks. They are entitled to, but they have not actually used it. Whether or not this means sportsbooks licensed offshore operating in the United States can function legitimately.

So, there has little effort to actually ban online gambling in the United States, on a federal level. No arrest has been made due to this, so you will generally not have to worry about being indicted under any of these laws. For the most part, they only pertain to operating a gambling site. This effectively transfers liability away from you as the player. Remember that this is only based on the federal level, as the state's have their own right to determine whether or not online gambling is legal in the state.

Is Online Sports Betting Legal In The United States?

This is a bit tricky and it all depends on your definition of legal as well as interpretation of the laws. Using offshore sports betting sites are only held back by the Wire Act which as stated earlier prohibits sports betting through wire communication. In other words, if you're not present when making your bet at a regulated sportsbook, it is in violation of this act. However, it is widely debated that this law doesn't apply to the consumer either. Like state laws, the Wire Act primarily targets bookmakers, not the bettors. And even then, unless the betting sites operates on U.S. soil, there really isn't much that can be done about it. Below are our recommendations for sports betting sites that allow Americans to wager. Like the other sites we list, we use these sites ourselves and can attest to their quality.

BetOnline - Accepts Numerous Deposit Methods, Makes Everything Easy For USA Players

There are other online bookmakers that accept U.S. players that we like as much as BetOnline but they don't accept bettors from all 50 states. We're all about accessibility and that is the reason why BetOnline heads this group of legal US sports betting sites. And, BetOnline is very efficient which is always the mark of a well oiled machine. But, BetOnline didn't get to where it's at now overnight. They built trust with USA players and BetOnline is as discreet as they come. Their reputation for a safe online gaming environment combined with reliable payouts, a 25% to $900 bonus on every deposit, and all the sports you could ever want to wager on makes BetOnline the flagship for legal online sports betting in the U.S.

Are Online Casinos Legal In The United States?

Right now, unless you live in one of the states where online gambling is prohibited (listed to the right) it is not illegal to play online casino games for real money. And, even if you do live in one of those states, the chances of you ever being prosectued is slim to none. The state laws are out to get proprietors and operators of online gambling sites, and traditional gambling establishments for that matter, not the consumers of the product. Below is our online casino that has gotten the best user-reviews and it legally accepts players from all 50 U.S. States.

Is Online Gambling Legal In Alabama

Lucky Red Casino - Operates Offshore, Not Subject To U.S. or State Gaming Laws

To start, you should know that we trust Lucky Red with our own money when we want to gamble in an online casino. We know that it is safe, and that Lucky Red is very discreet so the only way you could even potentially get into trouble is if you go blabbing all around town about it. Lucky Red accepts all USA players and even offers an outstanding 400% to $4,000 (LUCKYRED400) welcome bonus for those who want to play slots or a generous 100% to $1,000 (LUCKYRED100) bonus which can be used on most other games. Deposits are easy and legal as Lucky Red uses several reputable third party processors which ensure success. For legal casino gambling that can't be beat, you've got to try Lucky Red.

Is Sports Gambling Legal In Alabama

Is Online Poker Legal In The United States?

Is Betting Legal In Alabama

Again, this is a bit tricky to explain but only because there are a lot of misconceptions. The straight up answer is yes, but events like Black Friday have stained the reputation of a lot providers in the industry. The truth is that the poker sites that folded (no pun intended) were really companies you didn't want to do business with in the first place. Money laundering and other charges is what brought these sites down... not providing online poker to players in the United States. Still, a lot of new and previous online poker players are still wary from being burned. For this reason, it is paramount to online recommend poker sites which have reputable backing with a strong foundation in the industry. Because of that, you will not see many sites recommended below but do know that the ones we list are by the books.

Bovada - Accepts All U.S. Players Except Those In New York, Nevada, Delaware, New Jersey & Maryland.

We don't like teasing you with something that you might not be able to use but with online poker we have to be careful. As we stated above, it comes down to using a reputable company and not the online gambling laws. With that said, we absolutely recommend Bovada. You may not have heard the name yet, but chances are you have heard of Bodog. Well, Bovada is Bodog only rebranded for a North American audience. Bodog was probably the biggest name in all-around online gambling types for U.S. players until Bovada was launched and took it's place. Unfortunately, not all of you will be able to play there... those in New York, Utah, Maryland, and Washington state will need to find another option. But, all other 45 states are welcome to come and play freely. Bovada always has tons of tables running plus tournaments that seem to start hourly or sooner. Plus, their 50% to $250 deposit bonus is another reason to join. We rely on Bovada and you can too... even if you have been burned before.