Online Casinos in Arizona

The Regulator Says Online Casinos Are Not Legal in Arizona

Arizona is one of the few states where the gaming regulator addresses the question directly on its own home page: "Online casinos (often referred to as “igaming”) are not legal in Arizona." The same page warns that "Fraudulent operators are falsely claiming that legitimate Arizona casinos have launched online gaming platforms."

The statute book agrees. Promotion of gambling is a felony, with a narrow set of exceptions: "A. Except for amusement, regulated or social gambling, a person commits promotion of gambling if he knowingly does either of the following for a benefit:", and "B. Promotion of gambling is a class 5 felony." Taking bets as a business is a separate offence under section 13-3305, and "C. A person who violates this section is guilty of a class 1 misdemeanor."

What counts as regulated gambling is defined, and the definition is the whole answer for online casino play. It covers "Gambling conducted in accordance with a tribal-state gaming compact or otherwise in accordance with the requirements of the Indian gaming regulatory act of 1988", gambling that "(i) It is operated and controlled in accordance with a statute, rule or order of this state or of the United States.", and "(c) Event wagering that is conducted pursuant to title 5, chapter 11." The exclusions section then puts it plainly: not unlawful is "3. Regulated gambling if the gambling is conducted in accordance with the statutes, rules or orders governing the gambling." An online casino fits none of those descriptions, and this site does not point readers at operators that are not licensed where they are.

Online Sports Betting Is Licensed, Online Casino Is Not

Arizona licensed event wagering and defined it as an internet product from the start: event wagering "(a) Means accepting wagers on sports events or other events, portions of sports events or other events, the individual performance statistics of athletes in a sports event or combination of sports events or the individual performance of individuals in other events or a combination of other events by any system or method of wagering, including in person or over the Internet through websites and on mobile devices." In that chapter "2. "Department" means the department of gaming.", and the Department advises players to "Verify that you are using a regulated operator that is licensed by the Arizona Department of Gaming."

That decision was made for event wagering alone. Arizona is a clear example of a state running a licensed statewide online sports betting market while making no provision whatever for online casino games, and the regulator's own page exists precisely because the two keep being confused.

Tribal Casinos Are Not State Online Licences

Arizona's casinos are tribal. The definition of regulated gambling recognises that footing separately from state-authorised gambling, covering "Gambling conducted in accordance with a tribal-state gaming compact or otherwise in accordance with the requirements of the Indian gaming regulatory act of 1988". A compact is an agreement about gaming conducted by a tribe; it is not a state licence and it is not an online casino licence. One place the distinction surfaces is the event wagering licence held by a tribe for mobile wagering off its lands, which the statute describes as a licence "to operate only mobile event wagering outside the boundaries of its Indian lands and throughout this state if it has signed the most recent tribal-state gaming compact and any applicable appendices or amendments." That is a sports betting licence, not a casino one.

Sweepstakes Casinos: Why No Status Is Recorded

No Arizona statute, rule or official opinion addressing dual-currency online sweepstakes casinos was found for this page. The Department's statement quoted above is about online casinos, which is a different product, and extending it to sweepstakes would be an inference rather than a finding. No sweepstakes status is therefore recorded. Sweepstakes casinos and real-money casinos are separate products and neither is presented here as a licensed version of the other.

Who Regulates, and the Minimum Age

There is one body and it is a department, not a commission: "Currently, no Arizona Gaming Commission exists in Arizona. Gaming in Arizona is regulated by the Arizona Department of Gaming."

The minimum age is 21, and it is built into the definitions rather than set out as a separate rule. State-authorised gambling only qualifies as regulated gambling, and so only escapes the criminal provisions, where "(iv) None of the players is under twenty-one years of age." The same condition applies to social gambling. That is the age for lawful gambling in Arizona, not an age at which online casino play becomes available, because none is licensed.