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

The gambling laws of the great state of Dixie are some of the strictest amongst the states that do allow gambling. Land based casinos are limited to only those that are located on tribal lands and lottery, online poker, sports betting, online fantasy sports betting and a lot of other gambling activities are banned in Alabama (AL). In this page we will do a deep dive into the forms of betting that are legal in AL, the Alabama gambling age for each activity and how you can play them.

To give you a detailed overview of the gambling age in AL for each legalized gambling activity we’ve simplified this information in the easy to read table below.

As you can see in the table above the legal age for gambling in AL is 18 for Pari-Mutuel or Horse Race Betting and Bingo (please note that Bingo gambling is limited in AL– but we will go into more detail about this later on in this page).

Whereas the gambling age in AL for entering the current land-based casino’s is 21, this is because all casino’s in AL serve alcohol and the legal drinking age across the United States is 21. However, if the tribal land casinos in Alabama were not to serve alcohol the legal age for entering a casino is 19.

Casino Age in Alabama

Under Alabama state laws land-based casino gambling is illegal. However, like many other states that have outlawed land-based casinos, casinos on tribal lands are permitted as they are effectively not within the state borders.

There have been challenges to the current AL law against land based casinos over the years, in the early 2000’s there were some race-tracks that were effectively racino’s, and combined their offering to include slot machines – however this was challenged and it was decided in court in 2012 that these were not within the bounds of AL state gambling regulations, all racinos were closed by 2013. Due to the currently legal precedent this decision is unlikely to be overturned anytime soon.

As discussed above, the casino age in Alabama is legally 19, but in reality it is 21 as all Alabama based tribal casino’s serve alcohol. The legal drinking age in the US is 21 and any casino that serves alcohol must limit the entry age to those who are above legal drinking age.

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

All tribal land casinos that are operating within AL are 19+ and as they all serve alcohol everyone who crosses the threshold of the casino must be over 21. There are three casinos on tribal lands in AL. The casinos are named Wind Creek Casino’s, and are located in Montgomery, Wetumpka and Atmore. All three casinos are owned by the Poarch Creek Indians who own several casinos across various other American states.

As mentioned earlier AL has some of the strictest gambling laws for states that have legalized gambling, and although casinos on tribal lands get around the no land casino AL state laws there are still limitations placed on the games that can feature. All three casinos are limited to Class II games, in accordance with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which means that the games on offer are limited to bingo and pull based slot machines.

The Poarch Creek Indians casino group is currently attempting to negotiate themselves into being able to offer Class III games such as table games – but this is still a work in progress. So, for those players who have their hearts set on playing card table games in a land-based casino their best bet is to take a drive across the state border to Mississippi.

For a full list of the addressed and names of each of the Wind Creek Casino’s located in Alabama take a look at the table below.

Sports Betting In Alabama

While AL does not allow traditional sports-betting it has legalized pari-mutuel betting on horse races and dog races. The legal betting age for engaging in pari-mutuel bets is 19 years old in AL.

Where AL used to have several live track racing locations available for live betting, there is now only one location still standing. For those wanting to place bets on live races in person in AL the only location still available to do this is Birmingham Racecourse. Players can still place bets in other locations across the state, but these do not have any live races taking place instead they live cast races from across the country – therefore acting as off-track betting locations.

Each county in AL has its each governing body for the regulation of horse and dog racing, these being – Birmingham Racing Commission, Greene County Racing Commission, Macron Racing Commission and Mobile County Racing Commission.

While there have been moves to try and legalize traditional sports betting in AL, the most recent being House Bill 315 from Rep. John W. Rogers which died when presented to the committee of Economic Development and Tourism – the current archaic gambling laws of AL are standing strong and traditional sports betting remains illegal.

Alabama Online Gambling Age

In AL there is an understanding is that online gambling is illegal, although as is the case with other US states this can be considered a slightly grey area of law due to the archaic nature of the laws governing gambling. The state laws governing gambling in AL were introduced in 1901, and therefore don’t explicitly mention online gambling – however it has been inferred through reading these laws alongside more recently introduced regulations, that the early 20th century set of AL gambling laws do in fact outlaw online gambling as well.

Some residents of AL have taken to using offshore online casinos that welcome US residents as a work around the implied illegality of online gambling in AL – and to date there have been no prosecutions of people for doing this. However, players should note that if they do choose to gamble with these offshore sites they will not be covered by the AL state consumer protection laws as these sites are not regulated by the state.

For those players who do choose to use offshore online gambling sites the gambling age is generally set at around 21 years old, however some do welcome players who are 18 years plus. It is also hugely advisable that players using these offshore sites check to ensure they are licensed and regulated, as some may suddenly close and take players money with them leaving players with no recourse to obtain their missing funds.

Online Poker Gambling Age

Sticking to the strict anti-gambling approach AL demonstrates across most forms of gambling, Online Poker is outlawed in AL. However, as mentioned in our earlier discussion of the online gambling age, players are able to potentially find a work around this law through using offshore gambling sites.

Players should note that while to date no-one has been prosecuted for using offshore gambling sites in AL, the laws surrounding this are very grey – therefore players should avoid overtly advertising their online gambling activity if playing in AL.

Daily Fantasy Sports in Alabama

One of the more contemporary developments in online gambling is Daily Fantasy Sports. While AL law does not explicitly outlaw Daily Fantasy Sports, it is understood that it is currently an illegal activity.

When first established, Daily Fantasy Sports platforms operated in AL based on an argued understanding that as they were a skills based activity they were not covered by the strict archaic AL laws that make most forms of gambling illegal. However, after the Attorney General of AL sent out a cease-and-decist order to Draft Kings and FanDuel in 2016 Daily Fantasy Sports has been considered illegal gambling under Alabama Code, Title 13A, Chapter 12, Article 2.

There have been some rumblings in the state legislature over the years about instating Daily Fantasy Sports as a legal form of gambling in AL, however it still remains outlawed for now.

Legal Age to Play the Lottery in Alabama

AL remains one of 5 states across the US that does not have a state lottery. Under the same laws that outlaw the majority of gambling in AL lotto is considered illegal. Currently those who wish to participate in a lottery draw only have the option of buying an interstate lottery ticket by driving across state boarders to Florida, Georgia, Mississippi or Tennessee.

However, the laws governing lottery in AL could potentially change very soon. A bill that has presented to the state legislature that proposes legalizing a state lottery that would help fund pre-kindergarten centers and scholarships for students to go to college and technical schools. This bill will be considered and ruled on by the AL legislature in 2020.

Alabama Gambling Laws & Future Outlook

Under this state legislation gambling is defined as being ‘when a person stakes or risks something of value on the outcome of a game of chance or future event not under his or her control or influence, by an understanding that he or she or another person will receive something of value in the event of a certain outcome’.

Under AL state legislation activities of gambling are considered to be ‘contests of chance’ which are further defined as being ‘a contest, game, gaming scheme or gaming device in which the outcome depends in a material degree upon an element of chance, notwithstanding that skill of the contestants may also be a factor therein’. AL state legislature has interpreted this to include the games on offer in land based casinos, online gambling, lottery, sports betting and daily fantasy sports.

With only 3 tribal land-based casinos and most other forms of gambling either illegal or heavily regulated AL really punches above its weight in terms of annual economic impact, bringing in $1.43 billion each year while also supporting over 12,000 jobs. This indicates a very healthy gambling market in the Yellowhammer state.

Any winnings made while gambling in AL are taxed depending on an individual’s tax bracket as winnings are considered personal income. This means that winnings can be taxed at varying levels, generally ranging from 2%-4%

The current state of gambling in Alabama is in line with the state’s down-home family values. With a severely limited number of legalized gambling activities and a general consensus within the current state legislature to keep to the status quo, it is unlikely there will be any major changes made to the gambling laws or gambling age in AL in the near future.

While the current overarching constitutional basis for AL state gambling laws will not change any time soon, there are some bills that are percolating through the state legislature that might change some interpretations of the current gambling laws.

As mentioned earlier in this page there is currently a bill sitting with the state legislature that would legalize a state lottery for AL. With general support amongst the AL public and so far positive murmurings from the state legislature, all of this coupled with the fact that state neighbor Mississippi recently legalized a state lottery – a state wide lottery in AL might not be that far away.

Also, while the Attorney General initially came down hard on Daily Fantasy Sports in AL, the overwhelming popularity amongst the sports loving public along with the tenacity of the Daily Fantasy Sports operators might see some developments in this area soon. If you want to travel to a state with legal gambling, head over to our guide to legal gambling ages in the USA.

Frequently Asked Questions

We hope that reading through this page has given you a good overview of the current legal state of gambling in AL along with giving you some insight into the legal gambling age in Alabama for each gambling activity that is allowed. If you still have some questions, we have attempted to answer some of the most frequently asked questions below.