Lawmakers created the Nebraska State Lottery in 1993.
Nebraska joined the Powerball multi-state lottery association in 1994. It joined the Mega Millions lottery in 2010.
Gambling News
Nebraska gambling laws ban most forms of betting, though the state allows a few idiosyncratic types of gambling. Bone fide games and skill machines are legal (for now). Sports betting and daily fantasy sports are illegal, though bills sit in both houses of the legislature to legalize DFS gaming.
The gambling laws are strict in Nebraska. Even football pools, March Madness brackets, and other such minor gambling is illegal. Social gaming is not allowed, while land-based commercial casinos are banned. Online poker, online casinos, and mobile gambling are illegal. In short, Nebraska legalized state-supported lottery gambling, charitable gambling, and Indian casinos.
We’ve listed our favorite casinos, sportsbooks and poker sites accepting players from Nebraska below. Pick a site and start playing!
Online sports betting is not regulated in Nebraska, but law enforcement officials don’t prosecute individuals who gamble at online sportsbooks. NE officials don’t have the resources to police such activity. Like most US states, the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which was passed in 1992 and enacted in 1993, banned sports betting for the past 25 years. In May 2018, the US Supreme Court struck down PASPA in a 6-3 vote, which allowed individual US states to pass sports betting bills. In keeping with its anti-gambling stance,
Nebraska lawmakers have not introduced a sportsbook legalization bill. Proponents should not expect sports betting anytime soon. For instance, Gov. Pete Ricketts said in 2018, “Sports betting is illegal in Nebraska and we have no plans to change that.”
Bovada is our pick for the best online sportsbook in Nebraska. Bovada features a $250 welcome bonus to all new depositors. Customers can place all bet types: single bets, parlays, teasers, round robins, future bets, and prop bets. As the season continues, Bovada posts full betting odds on NBA games. You can bet the spreads, on over/under totals, or moneyline bets (win).
Online casinos are not regulated, but players won’t be prosecuted if they play for real money online. Players should be cognizant of the laws of the state and understand, though Nebraska law enforcement has never charged online gamblers with a misdemeanor, that does not mean they won’t in the future. Keeping checking back for the latest updates on Nebraska’s online gambling laws. Those organizing illegal online gambling in Nebraska are the ones who would face the brunt of the law, of course.
Cafe Casino is our recommendation for Nebraska online casino players. Cafe Casino offers a $5000 welcome bonus or a $1000 no-max bonus. Play over 250 slots, including top games like Coins of Olympus, Codename Jackpot, or a progressive slot like Jackpot Cleopatra’s Gold.
Yes. Online poker is not licensed and regulated in Nebraska. To be realistic, Nebraska gamblers continue to play at unlicensed offshore online poker sites, but that is not sanctioned by the Nebraska legislature. Some online gambling sites suggest that makes online poker legal in Nebraska. In truth, such gaming exists in a gray area. It certainly isn’t legal if you read Section 29-1110 above, but such activities are not prosecuted by Nebraska authorities.
Nebraska online poker players should consider Ignition Poker as their go-to card site. Ignition bought Bovada’s poker room in 2016 – now the two share poker liquidity. Ignition offers a $1000, 100% poker bonus to first depositors. Ignition Poker’s tournaments list includes monster stack events, jackpot sit & go tournaments (for mobile players), $150K guaranteed poker tournaments, and $100k guaranteed high roller events. Use Zone Poker to keep the game going faster, while anonymous tables keep the poker fair.
Online gambling is unregulated, but Nebraska law enforcement doesn’t prosecute NE online gamblers. The State of Nebraska never legalized and regulated most forms of gambling, though charitable gambling is widespread and the major forms of lottery gambling are available. Land-based casinos are restricted to five tribal gaming venues.
The state of Nebraska continues to ban commercial casinos, though most of its neighbors have both. One gets the idea Nebraska would ban anything but state-sponsored and charitable gaming, if possible. The 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act keeps Nebraska from an outright ban of tribal casinos, but the legislature has no interest in allowing commercial land-based casinos, online casinos, online poker sites, or sportsbooks.
The minimum age for gambling in Nebraska is 18 year old for pari-mutuel horse race betting and charitable games. If you wish to bet on the lottery or keno, though, you’ll need to be 19 years or older. Online players must be 18 to sign up for a casino, sportsbook, or poker site account.
Most forms of gambling are illegal in the State of Nebraska, though charitable gambling is widespread and the major forms of lottery gambling are available. Land-based casinos are restricted to five tribal gaming venues. The state of Nebraska continues to ban commercial casinos, though most of its neighbors have both.
One gets the idea Nebraska would ban anything but state-sponsored and charitable gaming, if possible. The 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act keeps Nebraska from an outright ban of tribal casinos, but the legislature has no interest in allowing commercial land-based casinos, online casinos, online poker sites, or sportsbooks.
Yes. Nebraska has 5 land-based tribal casinos.
Yes. Nebraska has 5 land-based tribal casinos. Class II gambling is legal in the state under the Indian Gaming Regulation Act (1988), a federal law which allows tribes which are accredited by the US Indian Affairs Bureau and which has signed a gaming compact with their state. Class III or Las Vegas-style gambling is illegal, so no commercial land-based casinos exist in Nebraska.
Yes. Nebraska has 5 racetracks which have pari-mutuel betting.
Yes. Nebraska has 5 racetracks which have pari-mutuel betting. The racetracks are found in Omaha, Columbus, Hastings, Grand Island, and South Sioux City. Each has a racebook, though the gaming facilities do not have betting shops or racinos.
No. Nebraska leaves its pari-mutuel betting to the official racetracks.
No. Nebraska leaves its pari-mutuel betting to the official racetracks. The state does not allow off-track betting, a move designed to help the local racetracks themselves.
Yes. Nebraska has a varied set of charitable gambling options.
Yes. Nebraska has a varied set of charitable gambling options.
Bingo halls are available throughout the state. Local raffles also are held by charitable organizations.
Keno betting is legal.
So are “pickle card games”, which are similar to the pull-tab games that are popular in other states. Pickle cards look a bit like scratch cards, though they have a different game mechanic.
No. Private poker games at home have been banned in Nebraska.
No. Private poker games at home have been banned in Nebraska. Do not host poker games, even if you don’t take a cut of the action.
Social gaming has not been formally legalized in Nebraska. Social gaming sites operate, but lawmakers and residents alike question the legality of such gaming.
Thus, sites like Big Fish Games, which offer “casual games”, operate in a legal gray area. Zynga and Double Down Casino sign up players, but the activity might be deemed illegal in due time. Nebraska players should check back periodically to make sure their social gaming is legal.
Yes. Nebraska allows “bona fide” games and skill machines.
Yes. Nebraska allows “bona fide” games and skill machines.
A “bona fide” game is a skill game in which the player bets against themselves. Nebraska’s official government website describes the type of games includes, stating, “Skill activities might include darts, bowling and pool tournaments.” Putting money in an arcade game or pinball machine is considered a bona fide game.
Poker and sports betting do not fall on the list of bona fide games, though. If the game has an element of chance, then it is not considered a skill game. In Nebraska, skill machines are defined as gaming machines that mostly involve skill. The Omaha World-Herald described skill machines thusly, “A slot machine, according to state law, is illegal when it’s primarily a game of chance or luck. A game becomes legal when it’s mostly a game of skill.”
The same article stated, “These so-called ‘skill’ machines, which also go by names like Nebraska Skill, Big Daddy, and Banilla, are thriving across Nebraska, tripling in number over the past three years.”
