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Arizona opens sports betting license application period but doubts about feasibility of market entry could limit interest

Derek Helling

Legal Writer

Publish Date: Jun 02, 2026

Fact checked by: Matt Moreno

Key Points

The application period is the fifth in Arizona history since the state legalized sports wagering.
Several licenses are available if parties are interested.
Current market share distribution and cost of redistribution could prove prohibitive for sportsbooks.

The Arizona Department of Gaming is calling for applications for the state’s several available sports wagering licenses. However, doubts persist about whether anyone will answer.

A group of four existing operators in Arizona regularly accounts for more than nine out of every $10 wagered using legal sportsbooks in Arizona, making it difficult for any new entrants to gain enough market share to justify the expense. While the potential for extra tax revenue capture explains why Arizona officials want to see a more robust array of licensees, the market may simply be too mature for economical reconfiguration.

ADG says it’s listening if anyone calls

According to a press release from the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG), the application period will open on June 26 and close on July 10. The statement notes that “the agency will accept applications for not less than one event wagering license reserved for Arizona tribes and not less than one event wagering license reserved for Arizona sports franchises.”

Arizona law allows for as many as 20 licensed sportsbooks in the state, evenly split between commercial and tribal operators. Commercial licensees must contract with professional sports franchises based in Arizona.

At this time, the ADG could issue up to seven licenses between the commercial and tribal vacancies. The full complement of 20 licensees has never been realized, with 18 sportsbooks at the height of that number in 2021.

Since then, several sports betting brands, including European stalwarts Betfred and Unibet, have shuttered their operations in Arizona. The factors behind the exits of those books may also preclude a flood of license applications in late June.

Revenue reports from the ADG routinely show that four of the 13 existing operators collectively dominate the state. Those sportsbooks are BetMGM, DraftKings, Fanatics, and FanDuel.

In March, the most recent month for which the ADG has reported numbers, the quartet accounted for almost $686.7 million of the more than $833.7 million wagered online in Arizona. Those four brands also accounted for over $40.4 million of the more than $47.2 million in taxable winnings for the month.

That left the other nine operators to split the remaining 18% of dollars wagered and 14% of winnings. March is typical for Arizona sports wagering in terms of licensee performance.

This breakdown also demonstrates the challenge that any new operator would face in Arizona. Most potential licensees lack the resources, including patience, to enter the game at this late stage and seriously compete.

Convincing Arizona bettors to defy nearly five years of habits on the scale necessary to make operating in the state profitable will not only be difficult but expensive. The capital burn will also be prolonged because that kind of disruption will take months to achieve.

For Arizona, new licensees mean new fee payments not only for acquiring the license but for renewals as well. Given the landscape of legal sports wagering in Arizona, though, the ADG shouldn’t expect the phones to blow up on June 26.

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