North Carolina regulators continue their crawl toward the launch of NC sports betting.
The North Carolina State Lottery Commission announced Thursday it hired Gaming Laboratories International, or GLI, to help get NC sportsbooks off the ground. The hiring occurred August 11, according to the NC Lottery website.
In the past year, GLI has helped Massachusetts, Vermont and Kentucky launch sports betting. Kentucky begins with in-person sportsbooks next week, one of the quickest markets to go from governor signing to live in US sports betting.
What GLI will do for NC sports betting
GLI assists with testing and certification in the sports betting industry. In North Carolina, the firm will help regulators in rule making, licensing, development of an audit program and risk control.
The NC Lottery said its hiring of GLI is the latest step to “responsibly license and regulate sports betting.” It will also launch betting on horse racing in the state.
The lottery has until June 14, 2024 to launch sports betting, but can launch as soon as January 8. Thursday’s announcement said the lottery wants to get “up and running in an effective and appropriate manner as soon as possible.”
Other regulatory actions in North Carolina
The lottery has also opened a request for proposal period for an “Enterprise Regulatory System.”
The licensee will manage license and regulatory requirements in the state.
Responses to the RFP are due September 6.
Other North Carolina updates
The NC Lottery began accepting operator sign ups August 8.
Those sign ups allow the operators to receive NC Lottery updates.
The lottery hired Sterl Carpenter as deputy executive director of gaming compliance and sports betting last month. Carpenter was tasked with building out the new department.
NC sports betting path so far
Gov. Roy Cooper signed sports betting into law in June.
North Carolina will miss at least the bulk of the NFL betting season, as it dictates the state can launch only as early as January 8. Still, the NC Lottery said it plans to launch as soon as possible.
While the path to live sports betting is slower than Kentucky, which also legalized sports betting this year, it will be quicker than Maine, which has yet to launch despite Gov. Janet Mills signing sports betting into law last year.
Legal NC sports betting set up
The state will allow up to 12 online sportsbooks in the state. Eight professional sports organizations in North Carolina can also open in-person sportsbooks.
The state will tax sports betting revenue at 18%.
There are already three in-person sportsbooks at tribal casinos in the state.
