Guide to Oklahoma Gambling Age: Casinos, Sports Betting & More

Oklahoma, the Sooner State, it’s not the first state you would think of when considering a gambling destination. However, Oklahoma has established itself as one of the most casino dense states in the US. With the largest amount of tribal casinos of any US state, the state lottery, Daily Fantasy Sports, bingo, and many more charitable gaming options – Oklahoma is one of the most liberal gambling states in Its area of the US.

The legal Oklahoma gambling age is associated to each form of legal gaming in Oklahoma to the party line and mirror the ages most other US states apply to legal forms of wagering.

In the table above we have outlined the lawful ages for each form of legal gambling in Oklahoma. The legal age for casino games and poker rooms is 21. Whereas, the legal age for bingo, lottery, Daily Fantasy Sports, and pari-mutuel betting is 18. If there is not an age underneath a form of gambling then that form is illegal.

On this page, we will discuss in detail each form of legal real money play in Oklahoma and the legal gambling age associated with each. We will also consider the history of betting in Oklahoma and any legal reforms that have taken place in its recent history. Looking to the future, we will give you some insight into any potential new gambling laws that could be on the horizon.

Casino Age in Oklahoma

As mentioned earlier, Oklahoma has the largest amount of tribal casinos in the US. With over 130 tribal casinos, casino gaming amounts for the largest contributor to gambling revenue in the state. Alongside the tribal casinos, there are also two racinos in operation In Oklahoma. These racinos are limited in the offering, and under state, legislation is only able to operate electronic gaming machines.

Tribal casinos have been an operation In Oklahoma since 2004, when Oklahoma residents voted in the State-Tribal Gaming Act. The State-Tribal Gaming Act finds its federal legality in The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 (IGRA), which was entered into law in order to allow native Indian tribes the ability to profit off gambling through casinos located on tribal lands.

Oklahoma currently has tribal compacts with 13 tribes across the state, these compacts dictate from the legality of tribal casinos within the state. under these compacts, the legal casino age in Oklahoma is set to 21. The state-tribal compacts also dictate what type of games the tribal casinos can offer, under the current compacts Oklahoma’s tribes are able to offer Class III games. Class three games include traditional casino table games, traditional casino card games and electronic gambling machines such as slot machines.

The casino age limit in Oklahoma is likely to set to 21 as this is also the legal drinking age in the US. As most casinos in Oklahoma serve alcohol, it makes sense that the entry age to casinos mirrors the legal drinking age. By having the same entry age as the drinking age casinos will likely be able to mitigate any issues that could arise from serving underage minors.

What are The Casinos In Oklahoma that accept 18 year Olds?

There are no casinos in Oklahoma that accept 18-year-olds . As discussed in the section above, the legal entry age for casinos in Oklahoma is 21. However, 18-year-olds should not be discouraged there are still some forms of gambling they can enjoy in the Sooner State. 18-year-olds are able to participate in the state lottery, play Daily Fantasy Sports, play bingo, and place pari-mutuel wagers.

For those above the age of 21, and who wished to gamble in Oklahoma, we have gathered together the names and addresses of five of the state’s top casinos and included them in the table below.

Sports Betting In Oklahoma

Oklahoma is home to several professional sports teams, and Oklahoma residents are also known to be sports fanatics. It is anomalous then that’s sports betting is yet to become legal in the Sooner State. As sports betting is not yet legal in Oklahoma there is no legal Oklahoma gambling age associated with it.

There have been discussions in the past couple of years between state legislators and local tribes regarding legalizing in-person sports betting on-site at tribal casinos. The most recent of these discussions took place at the end of 2019, this discussion culminated in a bill that was presented to the state legislature which proposed that tribal state compacts should be expanded to include sports pools. Bing sports pause would have allowed for ‘the wagering on the outcome of one or more competitive games in which athletes participate or on one or more performances of such athletes in such games were orbited are placed in a common pool or pot from which all winnings prizes and direct costs are paid’.

This proposed bill was the most expansive and widely accepted move to legalize sports betting in Oklahoma’s recent history. Unfortunately, the bill was still tabled by the state seen it when it recessed at the conclusion of 2019. Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, further discussions regarding legalizing sports betting in Oklahoma have been delayed. We will have to wait until business as usual resumes for the state legislature to say whether in-person sports betting will become a reality for Oklahoma residents

In the meantime, there are still forms of sports betting Oklahoma residents can enjoy. Since 1963 Oklahoma residents have been able to place wagers on horse races as pari-mutuel betting is legal. Oklahoma still has 4 horse racetracks in operation Which allow for in-person bets along with allowing punters to place bets on simulcast races. The legal gambling age for pari-mutuel betting in Oklahoma is 18.

Another form of sports betting that is open to Oklahoma residents is Daily Fantasy Sports. Daily Fantasy Sports operates in a very grey area of legality, but we will discuss this in further detail later on this page.

Oklahoma Online Gambling Age

Unfortunately for Oklahoma residents, there is little to no online gambling available in the state. Online casino games are considered illegal, as are most forms of online sports betting. As online gaming is mainly illegal there is no blanket legal gambling age associated with it.

There have been some moves by tribal casinos over the years to introduce online casinos. These moves by local tribes are yet to be successful, this is most likely because Oklahoma retains its conservative view when it comes to adopting new forms of gambling. However, many compacts between local tribes in Oklahoma State are due to expire in 2020 and this it could provide the impetus for tribes to really push to offer a form of online gambling – whether this happens remains to be seen, and we will have to wait for these new compacts to be negotiated.

Some Oklahoma residents may have noticed that there are some offshore gambling websites that are accessible within the state’s borders. However, residents should be wary of such offshore sites for several reasons. Firstly, online casino gaming is considered illegal in Oklahoma and those caught playing online could be prosecuted. Secondly, any offshore gambling website is not licensed or registered in the US – this would cause issues for players based in the US should anything go wrong as they would not have recourse against the website operators under US consumer protection laws.

While residents of Oklahoma cannot enjoy online real money games there are still several other forms of gambling there are legal within the state. To check out what they are and the legal age associated with each take a look at our easy to read gambling ages table located at the top of this page.

Online Poker/Poker Gambling Age

As you have probably already guessed after reading the section above, online poker is illegal in Oklahoma. There are no legal websites Oklahoma residents can access within the state borders to play poker, so those poker fanatics who find themselves in Oklahoma obvious just stick to playing poker in person at either a tribal casino, one of the states licensed cardrooms or participate and a charitable poker match.

In-person poker is legal at local tribal casinos and licensed cardrooms. In line with the legal casino age, the legal minimum age for playing poker in person In Oklahoma is 21. Oklahoma residents are known as being fans of poker, especially Texas hold’em. When enjoying playing poker at one of the states cardrooms ever trends can also take advantage of the mini-tournaments that are hosted across the state throughout the year.

It doesn’t look like Oklahoma State will legalize online gambling anytime soon. However, if there are major moves by neighboring states to legalize online gambling in the near future we can be assured that Oklahoma will watch with great interest.

Daily Fantasy Sports

Daily Fantasy Sports has been active in Oklahoma since the early 2000s. However, Daily Fantasy Sports beating has yet to be explicitly classed as legal within the state, and it has also not been explicitly classed as illegal either. Instead, Daily Fantasy Sports operates and a grey area of the law, with many major operators arguing it has implied legality. The legal gambling age all operators require players to be in order to participate in Daily Fantasy Sports in Oklahoma is 18.

There have been attempts to legalize Daily Fantasy Sports in Oklahoma, the most recent of which took place in 2016. However, all efforts to legalize Daily Fantasy Sports were shot down due to conflicting interests of local tribes. Players in Oklahoma should not be worried by the fact that local tribes oppose its legality, the state appears to be happy to allow Daily Fantasy Sports operations to continue as usual and the legal grey area.

Legal Age to Play the Lottery in Oklahoma

Oklahoma is one of the more recent states in the US to adopt a state lottery. Only as recently as 2004 did the Oklahoma public vote to allow the formation of a lottery Commission and lottery trust fund, the first lottery tickets within sold in late 2005. The legal gambling age for participating in the Oklahoma State lottery is 18.

There are a plethora of local and multi-jurisdictional lottery games available to Oklahoma residents including national favorites Powerball, Mega Millions and Lotto America. The ribbon you raised through the sale of lottery tickets, is used by the state to fund state infrastructure and initiatives. Due to the altruistic basis Of Oklahoma state lottery, it has quickly become a state institution And favored form of gambling among the state’s residents.

As established earlier on in this page, there are little to no forms of online gambling available in Oklahoma. Therefore, it will come as no surprise that Oklahoma does not currently have an online lottery. While there have been murmurs of an online lottery being set up nothing concrete has appeared to date.

Oklahoma Gambling Laws & Future Outlook

Oklahoma’s gambling laws can be found and the Oklahoma statutes under title 21 and title 3A. Under these statutes gambling is defined as, ‘betting or bargaining that, dependent upon chance, one stands to lose or win something of value specified in an agreement between parties’. Under this definition, all forms of legalized gambling in Oklahoma could be considered gambling.

Daily Fantasy Sports is one form of popular gambling that has been discussed on this page that could fall outside the remit of this gambling definition. Daily Fantasy Sports operators have long argued that Daily Fantasy Sports is a game of skill and not chance and therefore cannot be governed by state gambling laws.

Oklahoma is known for having a very healthy gambling market, in 2019 alone the tribal casinos operating in Oklahoma’s borders created an economic footprint of almost $10 billion while supporting over 75,000 jobs. historically, the boom or bust oil and agriculture industries have been considered the backbone of Oklahoma’s economy. But more recently the argument has been made that Gambling now trump’s the two and provides a more stable backbone to the state’s economy.

There are taxes applied two gambling winnings in Oklahoma. The tax rate applied to gamble winnings is dictated by the winners’ personal income tax rate, As gambling winnings are considered personal income they must be declared at the end of the year on each individual’s tax return. some forms of gambling, such as the state lottery, require additional federal taxes be paid.

As established earlier the current gambling outlook in Oklahoma is a positive one, the revenue generated by the gambling market continues to grow on average by 10% each year and there are no signs that this growth will diminish anytime soon.

In terms of future gambling law developments in Oklahoma, the most obvious would be the adoption of sports betting laws to allow in-person Sports wages to be placed at the state’s tribal casinos. However, as the state-tribal compacts are due to be renegotiated in 2020 we will have to wait for the negotiations to conclude to see whether any new forms of gambling will be adopted.

Frequently Asked Questions

We hope that this page has provided you a good overview of the gaming market in Oklahoma, as well as giving you some insight into the legal forms of real money activities and the state and the legal Oklahoma gambling age associated with each. Should you have any additional questions, take a look at the answers to the most frequently asked questions below.