North Carolina Lottery Commission Issues Sports Betting Licenses

The North Carolina State Lottery Commission on Thursday issued eight sports betting licenses for operators, which clears the way for them to begin registering players and accepting deposits Friday at Noon ET. North Carolina's sports betting launch day set for for March 11.

The Commission said it expects to approve additional licenses in the near future, but the eight North Carolina sports betting apps that will be live in the state on launch day are FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars, Bet365, ESPN Bet, Fanatics, and Underdog.

In a statement regarding the approvals, Ripley Rand, chair of the North Carolina State Lottery Commission, said the move “represents a major milestone in establishing legal sports betting in North Carolina. North Carolinians can begin signing up for accounts on their mobile devices on Friday with the confidence they will soon be able to make wagers on their favorite sporting events securely and responsibly. We’re just 11 days away from the start of sports betting in North Carolina and we will be working every day between now and then to see that our launch is a successful one.”

Bettors in the state will have a number of opportunities to wager on their favorite in-state teams on the professional and college level within the first 48 hours of the state launch. The Charlotte Hornets face the Detroit Pistons on March 11 and the Carolina Hurricanes face the New York Rangers on March 12.

Of course there's also the ACC Tournament, which also tips off on March 12 and the NCAA Tournament which begins on March 19. Bettors will also be able to wager on in-state player props in college basketball. You can keep up with the latest legal happenings in North Carolina and check out the latest North Carolina betting promos as we get closer to launch day.