Both DraftKings and FanDuel have put in applications for Arkansas sports betting licenses.
None of the major players in the US market had previously sought Arkansas sports betting licenses.
Arkansas has been offering legal and regulated online sports betting since 2022.
While Arkansas has offered legal and regulated sports betting since 2018, and added online and mobile wagering to the mix in 2022, none of the major US sports betting sites have ever shown much interest in opening up for business in the Razorback State.
Until now, that is.
The top two online sportsbooks in the US market, DraftKings and FanDuel, have put in applications for Arkansas sports betting licenses.
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration spokesperson Scott Hardin confirmed to
Little Rock television station KNWA FOX24
that both of the prominent sports betting sites are looking to locate in the state.
Under the sports betting law in Arkansas, for a sportsbook to be granted a license to operate in the state, the site must form a partnership deal with an Arkansas land-based casino. There are three casinos in the state – Oaklawn Casino in Hot Springs, Saracen Casino in Pine Bluff, and Southland Casino in West Memphis.
Each land-based casino is permitted to partner with two separate sportsbooks. According to published reports, if approved, FanDuel is set to partner with Southland Casino. DraftKings will reportedly form a partnership with Oaklawn Casino. Once approval for a license is granted, the sites will be able to begin offering sports betting in Arkansas immediately.
The Arkansas Racing Commission is the state regulator for sports betting and will ultimately determine whether the license applications from DraftKings and FanDuel will gain approval. The next commission meeting is scheduled for later this month.
Currently, there are three online sports betting sites operating in Arkansas. Oaklawn Sports is partnered with Oaklawn Casino. BetSaracen works with the Saracen Casino Resort. And the Betly Sportsbook teams up with Southland Casino.
While neither DraftKings nor FanDuel provides online sports betting access in Arkansas, DraftKings does offer access to its daily fantasy sports site in the state. Both FanDuel and DraftKings also operate their prediction sites in Arkansas. However, neither site allows access to sports event contracts in the state.
In Arkansas, DraftKings Predict only enables access to financial markets. FanDuel Predicts enables Arkansas players to access even contracts on commodities, economics, and finance. In general, neither company offers sports event contracts in states where they are operating a sportsbook.
DraftKings currently offers sports betting in 27 states and the District of Columbia. FanDuel offers sports betting in 26 states, as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.
Arkansas sports model is unattractive to the major betting sites
The cost of operating a sports betting site in Arkansas has deterred the big sportsbooks from setting up shop in the state. Arkansas sports betting laws require that sportsbooks share 51% of all betting revenue earned with its partner casino. In the majority of states, the revenue-sharing plan is negotiated privately between the sports betting site and the partner casino.
The limited population (3.1 million) of Arkansas, coupled with the high cost of operating in the state, has kept sportsbooks from opening there. It has also resulted in poor sports betting revenue numbers. During 2025, just $655 million was legally wagered on sports in Arkansas.
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