It doesn’t appear North Carolinians will head to a betting window any time soon.
Key takeaways
- The Carolina Hurricanes' CEO doesn’t believe in-person betting windows will “materialize” in the Tar Heel State.
- Pro sports teams, several venues, and online sports betting partners can apply for retail wagering, although none attempted the difficult process.
- North Carolina generated over $116 million in tax revenue and $6.4 billion in wagers during the 2024-2025 fiscal year.
The CEO of North Carolina’s NHL team recently said the Hurricanes, or any other professional team partnered with mobile sports betting operators, have no plans for a retail license.
“I don’t know that we or anyone else in North Carolina, maybe with the exception of horse racing, if it becomes legalized, will do anything like that because it doesn’t make sense to take up the space with a window,” Hurricanes’ CEO Brian Fork said during a recent interview on the "Ovies & Giglio" podcast.
Covers reached out to the North Carolina State Lottery Commission for an update on retail sports betting.
Sticking to mobile
The Tar Heel State legalized online and retail sports betting in June 2023, and the mobile version launched in March 2024 with eight operators. Unlike some U.S. states, which debuted in-person betting first, North Carolina focused on an online approach to become operational in time for March Madness.
Then it took until September 2024 for the commission to create a certificate of approval process. Pro teams like the Hurricanes, the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, and the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets are authorized to open retail sportsbooks through their online partners. Venues like the Charlotte Motor Speedway and Quail Hollow Golf & Country Club can do the same.
Nearly 16 months into sports betting, and just a month from the start of the lucrative college football and NFL wagering seasons, the Tar Heel State doesn’t appear close to offering in-person betting.
“The law only allows us to do it just through Fanatics,” said Fork, whose team plays at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh. “There was a lot of debate, was a (retail) sportsbook a good idea or a bad idea…I don’t know that you’ll see any of them materialize.”
Window-less wagering
Fork argued having multiple online sportsbooks decreases the need for retail shops.
He said the organization discussed it, but he doesn’t see fans walking up to a window, opening a new account, and placing bets with cash when they can use sportsbook accounts on their cell phones.
“You really just need a restaurant to sit down with your friends and watch some games on TV,” Fork said.
If anything, Fork is surprised North Carolina hasn’t gone beyond the current eight online operators.
“It’s interesting that not all of the licenses that have been issued have been picked up,” Fork said. “I don’t think that was expected.”
No easy task
North Carolina regulators made it possible for any teams, venues, and partners to try out retail sports betting, but the process is arduous.
To obtain and maintain a retail compliance certificate, operators must be in good standing with regulators, submit operational documents, obtain lab certification, host on-site inspections before launch, and meet other regulatory requirements.
The ends just might not justify the means for most Tar Heel State operators and partners.
“There is a great deal that goes into an opening of this space,” Sterl Carpenter, the state's deputy executive director of gaming compliance and sports betting, said in September 2024. “It’s almost like a tiny casino.”
Online sports betting in North Carolina has done quite well. In the latest fiscal year, which ended in June, the Tar Heel State collected over $116 million in tax revenue from more than $6.4 billion in wagers. Mobile sportsbooks claimed more than $647 million in gross income from July 2024 through June 2025.
