North Carolina’s Online Sports Betting Launch Sees Heavy Activity

Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY SportsAccording to GeoComply, there are more than 370,000 active online sports betting accounts in the stateIn the first 48-hours of activity, GeoComply identified more than 5.36 million geolocation checks in the stateNorth Carolina online sports betting launch on Monday, March 11, at noon

Expectations for North Carolina online sports betting were sky high leading up to this week’s launch and early returns suggest they may be living up to projections.

According to GeoComply, a geolocation compliance company, more than 5.36 million geolocation checks occurred in North Carolina during the first 48 hours after the state’s March 11 online sports betting launch.

By comparison, GeoComply recorded just a little over 2 million geolocation checks from neighboring Virginia during the same time period. Virginia has been live with online sports betting since January 2021.

Thousands of Registered North Carolina Accounts

Since Monday’s launch, GeoComply identified nearly 370,000 active online sports betting accounts in the Tar Heel State during the state’s first two days of activity. The company recording just 134,000 active sports betting accounts in Virginia.

Early data has shown a bevy of activity in North Carolina, which should only increase as the state moves into the ACC men’s basketball tournament and next week’s NCAA March Madness tournaments.

“It’s early, but North Carolina is already delivering on lawmaker expectations when they legalized online sports betting last year. The state’s well-structured approach to mobile sports betting safeguards consumers and opens up significant revenue streams. With March Madness around the corner, we are excited to see continued growth,” Lindsay Slader, GeoComply’s SVP of Compliance, said in a press release.

🚨GeoComply Heat Map Alert🚨

48 hours in and more than 5.36 million geolocation checks from 370k+ sports betting accounts within North Carolina. pic.twitter.com/fuJTnRvMmJ

— John A Pappas (@yanni_dc) March 13, 2024

Eight operators are currently live and accepting bets. Here are the licensed sportsbooks that are currently live in the state:

bet365 North Carolina: Charlotte HornetsBetMGM North Carolina Charlotte Motor SpeedwayCaesars Sportsbook North Carolina: Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise CherokeeDraftKings NC: NASCARFanatics Betting and Gaming: Carolina HurricanesFanDuel North Carolina: PGA TourPENN Sports Interactive (ESPN BET North Carolina): Quail Hollow Club (PGA Tour course)Underdog Sports: McConnell Golf

As part of the application process, sportsbook operators had to partner with either a state sports franchise, arena, NASCAR track, or PGA Tour course.

In-State Colleges a Popular Bet

North Carolina sports bettors flocked to their sportsbook apps to place bets on in-state colleges to win the upcoming NCAA basketball championship.

According to a BetMGM spokesperson, nearly 48% of all bets placed on the March Madness tournament were placed on the UNC Tar Heels to win the championship. Interestingly, only 4.2% of bets in North Carolina were placed on Duke to win the tournament.

The first bet in North Carolina history on the BetMGM app was $100 to win $1,800 on UNC at +1800 to win the NCAA tournament.

A Caesars Sportsbook spokesperson reported during the first 20 minutes of the state’s launch a user placed a $500 bet on UNC to win the men’s tournament at +1600 odds.

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