Legal Online Gambling and Sports Betting in IOWA

When Did Online Gambling Become Legal in Iowa?

The 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) that prohibited sports betting on amateur sports effectively banned all kinds of betting on sports in Iowa. In May 2018, the US Supreme Court requested that state-regulated sports become legal in Iowa after which Bill SF617 was signed into law by Governor Kim Reynolds.

Three months later, in August 2019 online sports betting became legal. Iowa gaming commission regulation did come with several strange restrictions that other US states do not have. The main oddity is that punters cannot register at online sportsbooks directly even though it is legal to bet on sports.

Until January 2021, sporting licences are restricted to land-based casinos. This forced Iowa sports platforms to form partnerships across Iowa at one of its many land-based casinos. Two brands are allowed to partner with one land-based casino. Players can open an account only in-person.

Later in 2021 punters can visit their preferred online sportsbooks directly without need to register at a casino first.

The Top Legal Online Sportsbooks in Iowa

• DraftKings Sportsbook – as Iowa’s number one sportsbook, DraftKings gives new members up to $1,025 welcome bonus. Punters can bet on major betting markets including Basketball NCAA, Pro Leagues like KBO, NCAAF, MLB, NBA, NHL, NFL, PGA Tour, football, Motor racing, parlay wagering, cricket, rugby, Aussie Rules, etc. Play via desktop or sportsbook app.
• PointsBet Iowa – get up to $200 in risk-free bets. To join Iowa PointsBet players must go to land-based casino in Burlington, Catfish Bend. New players must use the promo code PLAYNJ to qualify.
• William Hill – register at William Hill Iowa at Isle Casino Bettendorf or Waterloo. Also, the Lakeside and Prairie Meadows are partnered with William Hill. This bookmaker offers a $50 free bet – bet $50 and get $50 cashback.
• Hard Rock – land-based Sioux City sportsbook offers desktop and mobile gaming.
• Elite Sportsbook – is part of the Riverside Casino and Golf Resort.
• Q Sportsbook – The Q is the land-based sportsbook in IA that obtained its license to operate online. It is another Iowa sportsbook with mobile app downloadable for android while iOS is available on App store.

Online Casino Games Available to Play in Iowa

• online slots
• poker
• blackjack
• baccarat
• roulette
• live casino games
• other popular games

Land-Based Casinos in Iowa With Online Sportsbooks

19 casinos throughout Iowa have received IRGC licensing which allow them to partner with sportsbooks online. 13 of the 19 launched their online sports after successful application for a sports license.

• Ameristar Council Bluffs – IA DraftKings partners with this casino in Pottawattamie.
• Catfish Bend – pop in at Catfish Bend when you want a PointsBet players account at Iowa. Located in Burlington it is a 24/7 platform.
• Diamond Jo – The Worth-based casino has partnered with two top sportsbooks. They are PlayMGM & Fan Duel.
• Grand Falls – located in Larchwood is a Bet.Works partner with accounts opened here every day from 12 PM to 12 AM.
• Harrah’s Council Bluffs located in Pottawattamie it partnered with Scientific Games.
• Horseshoe Council Bluffs with tribal bingo (class ii) casino located in Pottawattamie it partnered with Scientific Games.
• Isle of Capri – Bettendorf – register for William Hill Sportsbook in Bettendorf weekdays after 10 AM and weekends after 8 AM.
• Isle of Capri – Waterloo – register for William Hill Sportsbook in Waterloo with opening times still to be announced.
• Lakeside – another William Hill Sportsbook partner in Osceola where you can open your account at William Hill after 10 AM.
• Prairie Meadows – is the William Hill Sportsbook partner with its location in Altoona, you can open your online sportsbook account.
• Q Casino – in Dubuque and while it did get its license it is unknown if it did partner with an online operator.
• Rhythm City – Davenport – partnered with Bet.Works online sportsbook you can register every day after 11 AM.
• Riverside Casino – in Riverside register Bet.Works account every day after 11 AM.
• Wild Rose – Clinton – register for a DraftKings Sportsbook players account at Clinton Wild Rose Casino between 2 PM and 10 PM Mon-Wed, other days including weekdays after 10:30 AM.
• Wild Rose – Emmetsburg – players in the Emmetsburg region register for DraftKings & BetRivers Sportsbooks at Wild Rose during weekdays from 11 AM to 11 AM and over the weekend after 9 AM.
• Wild Rose – Jefferson – players in Jefferson register for DraftKings or BetRivers Sportsbooks at Wild Rose during weekdays from 11 AM to 11 AM and over weekends after 9 AM – 10 PM.

What Can I Bet on Online in Iowa?

• Horse racing bets – At various online and land-based operators and OTBs.
• DFS contests – register at a land-based casino to access operators like FanDuel and DraftKings for the top Iowa DFS.
• Lottery games – must be purchased at retail outlets.
• Sports betting online or at retail venues – players must register at the partnered land-based casino to access a sports betting operator.

What Kind of Online Horse Betting Will Be Available in Iowa?

Racetracks

Prairie Meadows Casino & Racetrack in Altoona has a one-mile racetrack with several events throughout the year. It includes quarter horse and thoroughbred racing and special races days.

Mystique offers thoroughbred racing and greyhounds throughout the year.

Off-track Betting

While the Prairie Meadows racetrack hosts all the horseracing events, there is more than one off-track betting option in Iowa. One of these include:

• Wild Rose Casino in Clinton
• Prairie Meadows Casino & Racetrack
• US Racing
• Iowa Indian Casino
• Riverside
• Davenport
• Council Bluffs
• Burlington

IOWA Live poker casinos:

• WinnaVegas Casino Resort, Sloan is one of the tribal casinos where a host of poker in table and machine format are played.
• Diamond Jo Casino – Worth, Northwood has a full poker room with a variety of poker types.
• Horseshoe Council Bluffs, Council Bluffs the Caesars Entertainment group operates and owns this IA casino with its diverse poker variety as one of the top poker sites.
• Prairie Meadows (racino), Altoona host regular poker tournaments at its land-based poker room.
• Meskwaki Casino (Class II tribal), Tama is tribal-owned with a live poker room with ten tables aside from various other tables outside of the poker room. Also, plenty of video pokers.
• Grand Falls Larchwood is a Vegas-inspired casino with a world-class golf course and excellent poker room with 8 tables as well as a variety of other poker tables + plenty of poker slots.
• Q Casino, Dubuque has one of Iowa’s best poker rooms and poker varieties including tables and slots.
• Catfish Bend Casino, Burlington has 600+ video poker slots and a live poker room with a diverse selection of Legal Poker in Iowa.
• Riverside Casino & Golf Resort, Riverside has multiple poker tables and poker slots. It also has a poker room with 14 exclusive poker tables.

Iowa Legal Lottery Review

Compared to several other states, Iowa has rather strict sweepstakes gambling laws even after the passing of the bill. While the state lottery is legal, it is only legal when purchased in-person which is like sports betting. A proposal to legalize Iowa lottery to online status is being prepared, by looking at Iowa gambling laws and taxes and see revenue to the state, but in the meantime, tickets are sold at online retailers.

Daily Fantasy Sports in Iowa

DraftKings IOWA

With two of the world’s largest daily fantasy sports platforms available at Iowa online gambling sites, it is no question that Daily Fantasy Sports in Iowa is a huge undertaking. After sports betting was legalized in the state, DraftKings which is the largest Daily Fantasy Sports provider partnered with land-based casinos to offer players an opportunity to register and play for real money. The 3 Wild Rose casinos are partnered with DraftKings Sportsbook.

FanDuel Sportsbook IOWA

The second-largest DFS real money gambling operator is FanDuel Sportsbook which partnered with two of the Diamond Jo platforms. While these two sportsbooks also run legal sportsbooks in the state, it is the fantasy betting punters are looking for. With no mobile wagering available in Iowa players will have to return to get their DFS app for FanDuel and Draft Kings.

Does Iowa Have Legal Land-Based Casinos?

• Harrah’s Council Bluffs, Council Bluffs – Caesars owned, featuring 500+ slots, pokers, roulette, craps, blackjack
• Blackbird Bend Casino (tribal), Onawa – table games + slots
• Casino Queen Marquette (riverboat casino), Marquette – 500+ slots, craps, roulette, poker, blackjack
• Catfish Bend, Burlington – poker, craps, blackjack, 600 slots
• Isle Casino Bettendorf, Bettendorf – El Dorado owned, featuring 1,000+ slots, 25 table games
• Isle Casino Waterloo, Waterloo – El Dorado owned, featuring 1,000+ slots, 25 table games
• Wild Rose Casino, Clinton – the Wild Rose Casino has hundreds of slots, blackjack, poker, and craps
• Wild Rose Casino, Emmetsburg – this Wild Rose is another sister casino with slots, poker, blackjack, craps while there is no baccarat at either of the 3 Wild Rose casinos
• Wild Rose Casino, Jefferson – has a host of slots, blackjack, roulette, and craps
• Grand Falls Casino, Larchwood – 8 tables, poker tables + plenty poker slots
• Lakeside Hotel & Casino, Osceola – 600+ slots, craps, and blackjack
• WinnaVegas Casino Resort, Sloan – offers table games including Mississippi Stud, Pai Gow Poker, Roulette, Craps, Blackjack, Bingo + 850 slots machines
• Hard Rock Sioux City, Sioux City – table games including poker, roulette, craps, blackjack, 883 slot machines
• Horseshoe Council Bluffs, Council Bluffs – Caesars owned, featuring 500+ slots, pokers, roulette, craps, blackjack
• Meskwaki Casino (Class II tribal), Tama – a tribal casino with massive bingo centre, poker, roulette, craps, blackjack, racebook, keno as well as 1,360+ slots
• Prairie Flower (tribal), Carter Lake – 1,000+ slots, craps, blackjack, roulette + poker
• Prairie Meadows (racino), Altoona – racetrack + casino with massive games collection including pokers, baccarat, blackjack, craps, roulette, video pokers + big six wheel
• Q Casino, Dubuque – greyhound + casino combination with high denomination 1000+ slots, pokers, blackjack, craps, and roulette
• Diamond Jo Casino, Dubuque – table games including blackjack, poker, roulette, craps, poker room + slots
• Diamond Jo Casino – Worth, Northwood – 17 table games, 777 slots
• Rhythm City Casino Resort, Davenport – here you have craps, roulette, various poker variations, various blackjack tables + 1000+ slots
• Riverside Casino & Golf Resort, Riverside – obviously, a beautiful gold course, massive poker selections with poker room, blackjack, craps, and roulette
• Ameristar Council Bluffs, Council Bluffs – 1,500+ slots, 5 table games including baccarat

How to Deposit and Withdraw From IOWA Online Gambling Sites

Players will be able to deposit funds to a players account after registration. With the current Iowa online gambling method of in-person registration, the methods vary but are expected to change within months. Players must take notice that all online sportsbooks and online gambling sites use the same withdrawal method as the one used to make a deposit.

When you register an account online, at real money gambling sites you will pre-select the currency and payment method which cannot be changed again. At present, it might work differently with the land-based registration. Top deposit methods accepted at Iowa online sportsbooks and gambling sites include:

• PayNearMe – an exceedingly popular method to deposit where you only need to transfer funds to the card that you buy at 7-Elevens and other retailers. Funds are sent to your player’s account via unique code with no need to enter banking or personal details to the card. A card can be used several times.
• ACH e-check – e-checks offer instant deposits while withdrawals take between 3 – 5 working days.
• Neteller – popular e-wallet in the United States and the Iowa online casinos and gambling arena, it is one of the recommended payments and withdrawal methods for casino funding to gamble online. Zero fees with instant payment and withdrawals taking a maximum 24 hours.
• PayPal – aside from Neteller is this the other number one recommended payment method in Iowa. It is safe, secure, and smooth with instant deposits while withdrawals take up to 24 hours. As a third-party app, you are not sharing bank or card details with any online platform.
• Casino Prepaid card – casinos partnered with the online sportsbook give players the option to use their funding method with a prepaid card that can be topped up as needed. You need to use the partnered casino and not another platform that is not linked to the casino in question.
• Online bank transfer – fast and secure, only the deposit is fast as withdrawals take between 3 – 5 working days to clear in your bank account. Compared to other payment methods bank wire is the least recommended as they often have fees especially for withdrawals.
• Debit & credit cards have always been an online sportsbook staple, but with the increasing number of other more conventional methods, it is used less. While casinos always make it an option to use debit and credit cards for payment and withdrawal, only withdrawal is instant. Withdrawal takes longer depending on the bank used but an average of 5 – 8 working days to clear in your bank account.
• Casino cage – a growing number of casinos that are linked to an online sportsbook, accept payments via their payment portal. It has no fees and is an instant deposit method. Players can use a casino cage for both depositing and withdrawals. Either is instant methods with no waiting periods or processing times.

IOWA Minimum Gambling Age

Iowa residents and visitors to the state must be a minimum of 21 years before being allowed to wager on sports in the state. Players undergo age verification processes and must live within state lines which are also verified using geo-location software in sports betting apps.