- Michigan Sports Betting News
- Michigan Lottery Online Games
- Michigan Online Gambling Bill
- Michigan Online Gambling Regulations
- Michigan Online Gambling Bill 2019
- Michigan Online Gambling
After a lot of negotiations, Michigan legislators and the Great Lakes State Governor Gretchen Whitmer finally agreed on moving forward with legalizing online sports betting and online casinos. In December 2019, the Senate and governor approved a set of gambling. The online gaming legislation passed in December 2019 mandates that all legal online casinos in Michigan must adhere to the minimum gambling age of 21. While tribal casinos can set their own minimum gambling age at their land-based properties, Michigan law dictates that online casino players must be 21.
Michigan online casinos are going to launch within weeks. The first Michigan casino apps could launch in December 2020.
Michigan Online Casino Launch Apps
Michigan online casinos are still waiting for the green light from the Michigan Gaming Control Board. Until then, many real money casino apps have started offering pre-launch no deposit deals. Just register before they launch to claim the free online casino credit with no deposit necessary!
- FanDuel Casino >> Claim $100 Free Bets Offer at FanDuel Casino with No Deposit
- DraftKings Casino >> Claim $100 In Blackjack Credit at DraftKings Casino with No Deposit
- Golden Nugget Casino
- BetRivers Casino
- BetMGM Casino
The state legalized online gambling at the end of last year. It’s taken time, though, for state legislators to finalize rules and regulations and the audit casino apps before they are able to debut in the state. After the law passed, the Michigan Gaming Control Board issued a timeline that anticipated the process would take more than a year. That meant that legal online casino apps wouldn’t launch until December 2020.
Seeing an opportunity to increase state revenue before the close of the year and to make up for lost revenue due to COVID-19 related casino closures, legislators are doing their best to speed up this process. Richard Kalm, the director of the MGCB, said the state is making significant process and launch is imminent.
In the meantime, if you are looking to play online games, we suggest playing at the Michigan Lottery Online which offers instant games and online scratch-offs.
Launch Of Michigan Online Casino Timeline:
- December 20, 2019: Online gaming legalized
- March 11, 2020: Retail sportsbooks launch in MI
- March 6-August 5, 2020: Detroit’s commercial casinos closed due to COVID-19
- September 23, 2020: MGCB held public hearings
- End of October 2020: Final economic impact statement expected
- November 2020: MGCB hoped to launch in November but gambling rules still need to be approved by legislators who cancelled their November session because of Covid-19.
- December 2020: If legislators finalize rules in the first week of December, Michigan Online Casinos could launch before the new year.
While legal online casinos haven’t launched in Michigan, it’s only a matter of time. Most operators have announced their partnerships with tribes and casinos and are waiting on the MGCB to announce the launch date for Michigan casino apps.
Below is a comprehensive list of announced partnerships and the apps you can expect to launch in Michigan.
FanDuel may be known for its sportsbook, but it also has an online casino. FanDuel’s online casino is available through its existing sportsbook app, and MotorCity Casino Hotel’s partnership will give FanDuel access to Michigan’s online gaming market. The online casino is only available in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, but it’s a glimpse at what could be available in Michigan.
In New Jersey, bettors will see FanDuel’s online casino under the BetFair brand name. It has blackjack, roulette, and baccarat games ready to entice new bettors. For bettors who want a more realistic experience, BetFair’s (read: FanDuel’s) online casino has a thriving live betting section available for all sorts of table games.
Finally, this online casino is filled to the brim with slot games. Whatever brightly colored theme bettors are attracted to, their taste is catered to in this wide selection of games.
FanDuel is offering a pre-launch registration promotion in anticipation of the launch of online casino apps in Michigan. Claim $100 in free bets at FanDuel casino, which includes $50 in casino bets and $50 in sports bets.
DraftKings is also known mostly for its sportsbook but is quickly gaining a reputation for a strong online casino in a handful of states including New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
DraftKings Sportsbook and Draftkings Casino will launch in the state as a license partner of Bay Mills Resort & Casino.
For players interested in casino games, sports betting, and DFS, DraftKings is a natural choice because all three will be accessible from a single app. The app is quite strong as well for blackjack lovers. DraftKings has a minimum bet of $1 and a maximum bet of $1,000 on its blackjack games, including its live dealer blackjack. They also offer a wide variety of slots and progressive slots.
Golden Nugget is a well-established name in gambling, with an iconic Las Vegas casino and the most successful online casino in New Jersey. Now, Golden Nugget is coming to Michigan, thanks to a partnership with Ojibwa Casino, which is owned and operated by the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.
Golden Nugget’s Michigan access granted through the partnership will allow the brand to ramp up its online gambling and sports betting business in the state once the market is officially open.
See our full Guide To Golden Nugget Michigan Online Casino.
BetMGM
Roar Digital is currently providing a sportsbook to the MGM Grand in Detroit, but it has an online casino, too. It has several apps, including BetMGM and PartyCasino.
Bettors will find familiar table games like blackjack, roulette, and baccarat. They’ll also find live dealers available who will deal cards and call wins and losses in real-time, just like a regular table. Roar Digital also has countless slot games that are just as colorful as anything on the Strip.
Learn more about BetMGM here.
BetRivers
Scientific Games also partners with Rush Street Interactive to offer the technology behind the BetRivers online gaming brand. BetRivers will launch online sports betting and casino gaming as a licensed partner of Little River Casino Resort.
The agreement, announced in June 2020, brings Rush Street Interactive, parent company to the BetRivers online gaming brand, to Michigan. Little River Casino Resort’s partnership with Rush Street Interactive also includes retail sports betting.
Hollywood Casino
Penn National Gaming operates Greektown Casino in partnership with Vici Properties. This partnership will eventually yield the launch of Hollywood Casino, an online brand owned by Penn National.
Hollywood Casino will function as an online casino available to Michigan players, operating under the Greektown Casino license.
Bettors may not recognize Penn National Gaming by name, but they may recognize Hollywood Casino. It’s an online casino that specializes in online slots games. Bettors must be at least 21 to play, and they had better love slot machines.
For a glimpse at table games, Pennsylvania’s Hollywood Casino website offers virtual blackjack and roulette games. There’s no baccarat on this website, though, so high rollers are out of luck there.
There are also no live dealers on the Pennsylvania site. However, Penn National Gaming offers physical terminals at its Pennsylvania horse racetrack with live dealers, so it’s possible that it could offer live dealers one day. But until the company announces otherwise, bettors won’t find live dealers on a Penn National Gaming website in Michigan. They should expect slots, blackjack, and roulette, then be pleasantly surprised at any other offerings they discover.
FireKeepers Casino
Scientific Games is currently providing its technology to power the live sportsbook at FireKeepers Casino and Hotel. A FireKeepers online casino is slated to launch in Michigan, also in collaboration with Scientific Games.
Online casino sites powered by Scientific Games technology in other states include blackjack, slots, roulette, and baccarat. There are also live dealers available for bettors looking for a realistic casino experience.
Scientific Games offers so many different games because of its content aggregation service. It uses its vast web of partnerships to provide access to many different games. When online casinos come to Michigan, BetRivers will have a massive selection of games to offer their customers.
Kewadin Casinos
GAN plc’s partnership with the Kewadin casinos is the largest partnership on this list. With five locations, Kewadin casinos have the largest number of locations in Michigan. GAN plc has physical sportsbooks at those locations now, but it has online offerings, too. Its operational sites are:
- OceanOnlineCasino.com.
- Betfaircasino.com.
Both sites offer blackjack, roulette, and slot games. However, only betfaircasino.com has baccarat and live dealers. OceanOnlineCasino.com appears to have neither.
This will be important for Michigan bettors to recognize. Just because most casinos have certain online casino games, doesn’t mean all of them will. However, the five Kewadin casinos will probably come with the full arsenal of online casino games. Online video poker for money. They have a year to prepare, so they’ll have plenty of time to learn what their patrons want and offer it when the licenses become available.
William Hill
William Hill’s deal with the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians puts it in two casinos:
- Leelanau Sands Casino, Suttons Bay.
- Turtle Creek Hotel & Casino, Williamsburg.
William Hill also offers its own online casino, William Hill Casino, to bettors in eligible states. William Hill’s online casino makes finding games particularly easy. Card games, slots, roulette, and live dealers all have their own categories. (Baccarat is under the card games tab.) If they get access to William Hill’s online casino, Michigan bettors will have a full casino at their fingertips.
FOX Bet & PokerStars (The Stars Group)
Thanks to a partnership with the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indian Gaming Authority, The Stars Group is in two casinos:
- Odawa Casino, Mackinaw.
- Odawa Casino, Petoskey.
The Stars Group offers the PokerStars Casino brand to US players, as well as the FOX Bet sports betting platform. Bettors will find blackjack, baccarat, roulette, and slot machines galore on PokerStars Casino platforms in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Live dealers are offered at PokerStars Casino NJ as well.
PointsBet
PointsBet joins forces with the Lac Vieux Desert Public Enterprise and Finance Commission (LVD) to offer online casino gaming and sports betting under the license of Northern Waters Casino Resort.
The Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians owns Northern Waters Casino Resort. Per the agreement, it appears that both the online sports betting and casino products under this license will function as a collaboration between PointsBet and LVD.
BetAmerica
In July 2020, BetAmerica announced a partnership with Island Resort & Casino to offer both online casino gambling and online sports betting. BetAmerica operates successful sites in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Mississippi.
The Hannahville Indian Community operates the Harris, Michigan casino and Churchill Downs is the parent company of BetAmerica.
Online Casinos That Could Come To Michigan
Unibet
Unibet does business as a well-established international gaming brand that’s beginning to expand into the legal US sports betting and online casino industry. Unibet started it’s US business plan with online gaming platforms in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Indiana.
Unibet has an agreement with Caesars Entertainment (now owned by Eldorado Resorts) to launch online gaming in states with Caesars-owned properties. Caesars/Eldorado Resorts doesn’t own any casinos in Michigan, however.
The Pennsylvania and New Jersey versions of the Unibet platform operate in agreements outside of the Caesars partnership, however. A similar arrangement could bring Unibet online casino to Michigan.
Caesars Online Casino
With the success of Caesar’s online casino app in New Jersey and Michigan, we anticipate that they will launch in Michigan as well. If not in partnership with Unibet, they could seek a partnership with a local Michigan casino to launch in 2021.
Commerical Casino Partnerships
Michigan’s casino industry includes three Detroit-area commercial casinos, as well as 23 tribal casinos located throughout the state. Online partnerships for the three commercial casinos are as follows:
Site | Commercial Casino | Partnered Software Companies | Live Dealer Available? |
---|---|---|---|
FanDuel Casino | MotorCity Casino Hotel | FanDuel | Yes |
BetMGM | MGM Grand - Detroit | Roar Digital | Yes |
Hollywood Casino | GreekTown Casino | Penn National Gaming, Inc. | N/A |
Tribal Casino Partnerships
In a situation unique to Michigan, both tribal and commercial casinos can partner with technology companies to offer legal online casino gaming. Several of the state’s tribal casinos already announced agreements to launch online sports betting, and those partnerships are as follows:
Site | Tribal Casino | Partnered Software Companies | Live Dealer Available? |
---|---|---|---|
DraftKings Casino | Bay Mills Resort & Casinos | Kambi / SBTech | Yes |
FireKeepers | FireKeepers Casino & Hotel, Battle Creek | Scientific Games | Yes |
Golden Nugget | Ojibwa Casino, Baraga & Marquette | Scientific Games | Yes |
BetRivers Casino | Little River Casino Resort | Scientific Games | Yes |
Parx Casino | Gun Lake Casino, Wayland | GAN | N/A |
LVD/PointsBet | Northern Waters Casino Resort, Watersmeet | PointsBet | N/A |
Fox Bet/PokerStars Casino | Odawa Casino Resort, Petoskey & Mackinaw | The Stars Group | Yes |
William Hill | Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel, Williamsburg | William Hill | Yes |
William Hill | Leelanau Sands Casino, Suttons Bay | William Hill | Yes |
Four Winds | Four Winds Dowagiac, Hartford & New Buffalo | Kambi | N/A |
BetAmerica | Island Resort & Casino Bark River | N/A | N/A |
Partner TBA | Kewadin Casino (Christmas, Hessel, Manistique, Sault Sainte Marie, St. Ignace) | GAN plc | Yes |
N/A | Kings Club Casino, Brimley | N/A | N/A |
N/A | Saganing Eagles Landing Casino, Standish | N/A | N/A |
N/A | Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, Mt. Pleasant | N/A | N/A |
What Are Online Casinos And What Do They Offer?
Online casinos are apps and websites that offer casino games from the comfort of players’ homes. Some of them involve real money, while others are free-to-play social games. They offer the kinds of card games bettors would expect to find at a casino, including blackjack, roulette, and on some websites, baccarat. But there are also slot games and games with live dealers available for those who want a real casino experience.
Even better, many of these online casinos offer bonuses to new bettors.
Online Casino Bonuses
One of the ways that online casinos–and most online gaming products–entice new bettors is by offering bonuses on the first few bets. There are two major types of bonuses. The first is a welcome bonus that puts money in a bettor’s account (with strings attached). The second offers risk-free bets, which act more like insurance than truly free bets.
Welcome Bonuses
Welcome bonuses are what they sound like. When bettors sign up and verify their accounts, online casinos will deposit a little extra money. Some bonuses arrive in customer accounts upon sign up and verification, like this $25 deposit from Hollywoodcasino.com. These are called no-deposit bets, because bettors don’t have to deposit their own money to earn a bonus. They also tend to be small amounts.
Deposit bets on the other hand require bettors to put money into their account before getting anything back. Take this $500 bonus from Hollywoodcasino.com that matches deposits up to $500. That means for every dollar a new bettor deposits into his account, Hollywood.com will add one dollar, until it pays out $500.
This matching makes it easier for bettors to pour money into their accounts and make larger bets. Online casinos want bettors to make multiple wagers and learn to enjoy them. Based on how widespread welcome bonuses are, this tactic seems to work quite effectively.
Risk-Free Bets
Despite the name, risk-free bets do require bettors to risk some money before receiving a free bet. This Golden Nugget Casino welcome offer spells the deal out pretty clearly. Bettors must place a wager, then get up to $100 back if they lose. It’s more of a refund for a lost bet than a risk-free bet. Some bettors may not think much of a small refund for a losing bet, but it can make anxious new bettors willing to give online casinos a try.
What’s The Difference Between Legal And Illegal Online Casinos?
Like online sportsbooks, online casinos have tell-tale signs that indicate their legitimacy. There are a few signs that bettors can watch for when they’re looking for legitimate online casinos in Michigan next year.
First, all online gambling websites must display the compulsive gambling hotline on their websites. It’s required by law in Michigan, and bettors will be hard-pressed to find any legitimate online gambling websites without it.
However, Michiganders will have a particularly easy time identifying legitimate websites. All online casinos must be partnered with eligible land-based casinos. These sites must also display proof of their license reasonably clearly.
These are important signs of quality to watch for. Missing them could lead bettors to risk funneling money into an account that will never pay out.
How Online Casinos Are Regulated
Commercial online casinos must be licensed by their state gaming boards before they’re allowed to go live in any given state. Michigan’s online casinos will be regulated by the Michigan Gaming Control Board–pending written regulations, of course.
However, tribal casinos have their own regulatory body. The National Indian Gaming Commission writes and enforces regulations on tribal casinos across the country. Tribes run casinos themselves, but the National Indian Gaming Commission must review and approve each tribe’s gaming compacts.
And to top it all off, all these regulatory bodies require casinos to pay bettors their winnings. Legitimate online casinos will not only pay winnings, but they will also have processes to resolve customer disputes. The same cannot be said for offshore scam sites accountable to no one.
How Bettors Collect Their Winnings From Online Casinos
Bettors get paid from online casinos by withdrawing from their gaming accounts. For example, FanDuel will process withdrawals through:
- PayPal
- Bank Transfer
- Check in the mail
It’s just a matter of bettors checking the option to withdraw in their online accounts. Remember though, non-cash bonuses don’t count toward cash withdrawals. A “free spin” worth $100 isn’t a free $100. Unless it’s hard-won cash, it doesn’t count toward a bettor’s withdrawals.
Everything Else Bettors Need To Know About Online Casinos In Michigan
Game link exchange. Online casinos are already in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and a few other states. They offer familiar staples like:
- Blackjack
- Roulette
- Baccarat (albeit not universally)
Many, but not all, online casinos also offer live dealers for many of these games.
Although online gaming is legal, the regulations governing licensing and online operations still need to be written. Those regulations won’t be ready until 2021, but that hasn’t stopped Michigan’s casinos from preparing. Every Michigan casino with a sportsbook deal has partnered with a company that also offers an online casino. PointsBet is the only sportsbook operator without an online casino, but its partnership with Penn National Gaming could give its partner casino access to online casino products in 2021.
As industrious Michiganders explore the online casino landscape, they should watch for signs that the online casino they’re browsing is legitimate. State-licensed online casinos will:
- Partner with licensed land-based Michigan casinos
- Display the compulsive gambling hotline number on its website
- Show clear evidence of its license per Michigan state law
The online casino landscape is dense, but it’s part of the ongoing evolution of the gaming industry. It began with sports betting legalization, but the wave of innovation sweeping the country’s gaming industry will bring online casinos to Michigan next.
FAQ’s About Michigan’s Online Casinos
There’s a lot to digest about the impending arrival of online casinos to Michigan. Here are a few questions that either come up often from new bettors or which may need clarification on their own.
Who Can Apply For An Online Gaming License In Michigan?
There are only two entities that can apply for an online gaming license:
-Casino licenses holders.
-Eligible tribal casinos.
-Eligible tribal casinos.
Michigan is keeping tight control over its gaming industry by only allowing online gaming to come from licensed casinos. It’s a way for Michigan to stave off scam sites that accept bets but never pay out winnings. It’s also probably how lawmakers appealed to gambling opponents to assure them that gambling would be a respectable industry in Michigan.
Who’s Eligible To Participate In Online Gaming In Michigan?
Only people 21 and older and who are not in the online casino’s self-exclusion database. The age requirement is straightforward, but the self-exclusion database may not be.
The self-exclusion database is a voluntary measure to protect problem gamblers from themselves. Bettors can register themselves so gambling outlets will refuse to let them gamble. Unless a bettor struggles with a gambling problem, it’s not a list that most bettors have to worry about.
What’s The Tax Rate For Online Casinos In Michigan?
8%. It’s on page nine of the bill legalizing internet gambling in Michigan.
Will DraftKings’ Online Casino Be Available In Michigan?
DraftKings announced a partnership with Bay Mills Resort & Casios to operate its online sportsbook as well as its online casino. They will probably one of the first casino apps to launch in Michigan.
>> Claim $200 in free bets from DraftKings Michigan by registering now, pre-launch
FanDuel will be one of the first online casino apps to launch in Michigan. They’ve already opened their retail sportsbook at Motor City Hotel & Casino in Detroit. FanDuel will launch its online casino and sportsbook as well for Michigan bettors.
>> Claim $100 in free bets from FanDuel Michigan for registering now, pre-launch
Are Sportsbooks And Online Casinos The Same Thing?
No. Sportsbooks are specifically for betting on sports games. Online casinos offer casino games. The reason sportsbooks came up so often in this article is because the Michigan Gaming Control Board created rules governing sportsbooks first. Since those were the only new ways to gamble in Michigan, casinos made partnerships that would give them a sportsbook in March 2019, and online casinos when the licenses were finally ready.
Basically, everybody’s making deals to prepare for the next big thing in Michigan’s gaming market.
Online gambling has been made legal in a number of states, with Michigan joining on Friday, December 20th, 2019.
It looked likely towards the end of last year that Michigan would join the growing number of states that have passed bills, but a last-minute change of heart from then-governor Rick Snyder has postponed that.
Luckily, the new governor, Gov. Whitmer, has signed bipartisan legislation that allows sports betting and online gambling in Michigan.
Continue reading to learn when the Michigan online casinos are going to be available and when you can expect to start being able to sign up.
Contents
Are Online Casinos Legal in MI?
Yes! But, to be more precise, yes, but you can not play any online casino games or poker just yet. These new laws take effect immediately, but it will be some time before residents of MI will be able to place any bets. Michigan casinos need to get some different state licenses first.
The hope is, though, that at the start of 2020, casinos will start being granted licensures and players can start signing up to play online.
Senator Mike Kowall then a number of years in bringing the bill to be discussed, and it was approved by the Michigan Senate and House. However, one of the final decisions Snyder made as Governor was to veto the bill.
But the new governor, Gretchen Whitmer, was brought the bill again, this time with greater success.
Online gaming has technically been allowed in Michigan since 2014 when the Michigan Lottery was introduced. It was just a matter of time before the state joined New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Nevada in making online gambling legal.
There are a number of other States who are considering similar legislation. It was possible, and also was something Snyder alluded to, that Michigan was waiting to see how online betting works in those states before making its final decision.
Now, there are MI legal online casinos.
This means that poker, blackjack and other popular casino games can be played legally at land-based casinos and online.
Michigan Sports Betting News
Retail Casinos in Michigan
Michigan Lottery Online Games
There are a great number of land-based outlets throughout the State. Many of these are located in Michigan’s largest city, Detroit. We’d expect that most of the casinos here will launch online operations since legislation has passed.
Registering for Online Casinos in MI
So as we’ve seen, you’ll soon be able to register for an online casino in Michigan.
We expect, though, when Michigan online casinos do become operational, the registration process will be similar to that as we’re used to with other online gaming companies.
Let’s talk about how you could sign up for an MI legal online casino. How to win at the casino with little money.
Hit the Register or Sign Up button when you go to the gaming site. You will then be presented with a registration form.
This form will ask you to enter your personal information and contact info. With other online casinos, they’ve asked customers to provide their full name, address, mobile phone number, and email address.
Michigan Online Gambling Bill
Many have also asked for a signee’s Social Security Number too. Your Date of Birth will also be requested. A Michigan online casino will need to know you meet the minimum age requirement.
You will need to input your location too, as any MI online casino will insist on you being present in the State when you bet with them. It’s important that the information you enter when you sign up for a Michigan online casino.
Michigan Online Gambling Regulations
If any information is found to be false, your account could be suspended. Your mobile number and email address will be used for communication purposes too.
In your Michigan legal online casino sign up form, you might also have the option to enter a promo code. A valid promo code could help you earn a welcome bonus or be needed to qualify for a new customer bonus!
Legal Online Casinos In MI
So, Michigan legal online casinos are on the way as 2019 the year that online gambling legislation is finally passed!
Michigan Online Gambling Bill 2019
There are plenty of land-based casinos scattered throughout the State, offering all kinds of slots and games, with Blackjack, Poker and Roulette amongst the favorites.
Michigan Online Gambling
Check our list of Michigan casinos above to find your nearest one.
It’s nice to finally say that online casino gambling is coming to the state of Michigan.