Bet on Sports in Las Vegas Nevada Sportsbooks
In the United States there are roughly 150 licensed brick-and-mortar sportsbooks, and all of them are located in the state of Nevada. This is because sports betting is illegal in the other 49 USA states. So while you’ll find plenty of gambling options in most states including a variety comprised of casino gambling games, slot machines, bingo, horse racing, dog racing, poker and state run lotteries, keno and scratch tickets, you won’t find sports betting outside the state of Nevada.
Bet Sports Online at BetOnline.com
Despite being illegal, over 50 million Americans are estimated to participate in sports betting outside of Nevada. For most, their action is placed either online at a sports book such as BetOnline.com, or with a local bookie – generally affiliated with the Italian Mafia. It would make great sense for the USA to legalize, regulate and tax sports gambling the same way it is done in most countries; however, logic and meeting the demands of those they represent is something that historically USA lawmakers give little credence to. The good news is that to our knowledge no one has ever been arrested, put on trial or convicted for betting online, so you might as well do so as well by giving your sports betting action to a site like BetOnline.com.
For those of you interested in Nevada Sports Betting, we’ll cover more on it below.
Nevada Sports Betting
Casino gambling has been present in Nevada for hundreds of years, but was first made specifically legal in 1931 at which time the Nevada Gambling Commission was established to regulate the industry. Nevada sports betting was not introduced in a legal form until 24 years later. The first Nevada Sportsbooks popped up in the mid 1950’s and at the time were separate from casinos. These sportsbooks called Turf Clubs were available in hotels that stayed out of the casino business, so long as casinos stayed out of the sportsbook business.
Casino Sportsbook gambling in Nevada as we know it today, came about when in 1975 legendary casino boss Frank Rosenthal (the man Robert De Niro depicted in the 1995 hit Martin Scorsese film, Casino) successfully petitioned legislators to allow sportsbooks in casinos. The Stardust Casino which Rosenthal managed paved the way for modern sports betting. Before long, nearly all Las Vegas and Reno casinos had sports books, and most simply cloned what Frank Rosenthal added to the Stardust. Features Stardust was the first to introduce include:
* Betting windows
* Big screen televisions
* Places to sit and watch games & races
* Interactive betting stations
* Odds boards
* Papers with different odds for the day
Today there are over 150 licensed sports books in Nevada, with the city of Las Vegas being the most popular place for sports betting. Below, we’ll cover what in our opinion are the top 5 sportsbooks in Las Vegas.
Top 5 Vegas Sports Books
#1 Caesars Palace – Caesars Palace gets our number one spot as best USA Sportsbook. For starters, from Caesars one could easily walk to two of our other top five sportsbooks (Imperial Palace and Venetian), and it is probably the most convenient strip property to catch a taxi ride over to another top sportsbook the Palms. However, Caesars Sportsbook offers much more than simply location; they also offer the widest selection of betting odds and a great atmosphere.
#2 Wynn – If you’re going to choose a sports book to die in while rooting for your team to cover the spread, make it the Wynn. This is by far the most luxurious sportsbook in Las Vegas with all amenities in place. The floorplan is large, and the displays are equally large and in HD. Each private booth has a flat screen television and a comfortable leather chair. Also, the most beautiful Cocktail waitresses in Vegas are there at your service, and you can also order food from the nearby restaurant.
#3 Las Vegas Hilton – The Vegas Hilton is one of the largest sportsbooks in Nevada at over 30,000 square feet, containing over 300 seats and 60 televisions, including a massive 15 x 20-foot screen featuring the day’s top sporting event. Even more impressive is that Hilton is the fastest to post early lines on most sports, including NFL and even will often offer betting weeks in advance. Also, during Super Bowl times you’ll find 300-500 different prop betting options.
#4 Palms – Palms is an acquired taste for most. Some tourists might find the sports book a bit too crowed and under staffed to be considered a top notch sports book. However, with Palms wide selection of premium drinks, attractive cocktail waitresses and plenty of locals to chat with, this is a great near-strip sportsbook, especially when drinking, to watch and bet games at. Having lived a 5-minute drive to Palms in the past, this was always one of my most visited sportsbooks, and I’d often pass right by another good sportsbook at the Orleans on my drive to Palms.
#5 Imperial Palace – Imperial Palace is one of the best deals in Las Vegas. This is a fun party spot in a great location situated across the street from Caesars Palace, next door to Harrah’s and Flamingo and a short walk to Venetian and Bellagio. What’s amazing is you can stay near these four and five star $289+ per night hotels for low to mid two figures by staying at Imperial Palace. Location is not all that can be said about IP, they offer perhaps one of the most relaxed and fun environments on their casino floor, and while some might call the IP a dive, long time visitors to Las Vegas keen on bargains often consider it a second home. The nice thing about the sports book is it is upstairs and completely sectioned off from the rest of Imperial Palace. Here you’ll find a separate massive theatre with stadium seating and projection monitors showing dozens of games, as well as the separate sports book area with old style hand written boards, large seating, drink service and more. In our opinion, Imperial Palace is one of the best places to be on NFL Sundays.
Once again, if you can’t make it to Las Vegas or other Nevada casinos, you can do sports betting online at Sportsbook.com.
