Atlanta is a sports town. The Falcons are consistently competitive in the NFL, the Braves have a rich history in the MLB and the Hawks have been an NBA team in the city since 1968. Atlanta was actually one of only a handful of teams to have a professional team in all four major sports leagues in the United States when the Atlanta Thrashers were an NHL team in the city. Unfortunately for the city, hockey didn’t fly quite as well in Atlanta, and the Thrashers moved north to Winnipeg in 2011. Atlanta did get another major team in 2017 when Atlanta United FC joined the MLS.
With all of the professional sports teams in the city, not to mention the speedway and various college sports teams, Atlanta is a hotbed for sports betting in the United States. On this page I will answer the basic question surrounding sports betting legality in Atlanta, recommend two online betting sites for Atlanta residents and touch on the progress of sports betting in the state.
Is Sports Betting Legal in Atlanta?
This question is easiest to answer in two parts.
Part 1. Sports gambling is not legalized in the state of Georgia. This means it’s not legal to operate a sportsbook or accept sports wagers (or horse wagers) in the state.
Part 2. Although it’s not legal to run a sports betting operation, it is not illegal for residents of Georgia to bet on sports with sportsbooks or betting sites located outside of Georgia.
Offshore betting sites, like the two outlined below, are licensed and regulated outside of the United States. These sites are able to accept Atlanta residents and provide safe, secure and popular betting platforms for Americans interested in betting on sports.
Best Sports Betting Sites for Atlanta Residents
- Built for American bettors
- Wide variety of competitive betting lines
- Easy to navigate betting platform
Bovada and BetOnline are the two most popular and well respected offshore betting sites accepting American players.
Bovada is our top rated betting site for Atlanta residents because of their focus on the American market. Bovada was originally launched to only serve the United States betting market. This means that their betting platform, promotions, banking options and customer service are all geared towards American players. Bovada has started to allows players from a few other countries to join, but they are still largely an American sportsbook.
Bovada is currently the most popular online sportsbook serving American players. Check out our full review here.
Offline Sports Betting in Atlanta
Unfortunately, offline sports betting is not allowed in the state of Georgia. This may change in the future, but at the present time it doesn’t sound like Georgia is interested in legalizing sports betting (sports betting bills have failed for four straight years – including 2024).
At the current time, residents of Georgia must either travel to a state that allows regulated sports betting (such as Nevada) or place bets online at an offshore betting site, like the ones I’ve outlined above.
Pari-mutuel betting isn’t even legal in Georgia, so Atlanta residents cannot even place bets on horse races. Once again, if you want to bet on horses you can do so at the offshore betting sites I outlined above.
Professional Sports Teams in Atlanta
Atlanta is home to four major sports teams. The Atlanta Braves of the MLB, the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL, the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA, and Atlanta United FC of the MLS.
Atlanta Braves
The Braves are really the pride of Atlanta. They are the most recent team to bring a championship to the city, with the Braves winning their second World Series in 2021. The Braves have made the playoffs in each of the past six seasons and should continue to be contenders for the next several years.
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were so close to bringing the Super Bowl to Atlanta in 2016, but a monumental second half collapse kept the team from attaining their ultimate goal. The Falcons have been in the NFL since 1966 and are yet to win the Super Bowl.
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks have been the cities NBA team since 1968. The Hawks haven’t brought much NBA success to the city, with the franchises best years back in the 50’s and 60’s before relocation to Atlanta. The star tandem of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray has brought more optimism to the team as they look to build into a contender.
Atlanta United FC
Atlanta United joined Major League Soccer in 2017. It took them only one year to lift the MLS Cup when they finished second in the league in 2018 and then put together a successful playoff run defeating the Portland Timbers 2-0 in the 2018 MLS Cup Final. Atlanta United are currently one of the biggest spenders in the MLS, as they look to rediscover their success from the 2018 and 2019 seasons.