When it comes to casinos and gambling, Wisconsin is fairly liberal. While its online arena is yet to develop into a regulated market, the land-based options are plentiful.

For starters, Wisconsin has land-based casinos managed by the Native American community. These are assembled into compacts and provide different games to visitors. In the Badger State, Tribal casinos fully substitute the commercially operated land-based venues.

The residents of the state can also purchase lottery tickets. Like in most other states in the USA, in Wisconsin, the lottery is a state monopoly.

Where the state falls out of the regular pattern is when it comes to racing and pari-mutuel betting. While greyhound racing is declared illegal in most other parts of the USA, here in Wisconsin it is still legit and such races are regularly held alongside horse races.

In addition to land-based casinos, pari-mutuel betting, and lotteries, the state also permits charitable gambling and different games within it. These events should be approved by the state and also require licenses.

What we found interesting when we were preparing the research on online and land-based gambling in Wisconsin is the state’s history of debates among legislators regarding gambling. Per most other states, there are lots of hearings, bills being drafted, passed, declined, and whatnot happening every year. In Wisconsin, everyone seems to be content with the way things are. There are barely any notions about new bills being discussed regarding any industry upgrades, be it online Sportsbook, virtual lobbies, or other options.

The state is currently not issuing any licenses to Wisconsin-based and targeted online operators. Nor is there any legal framework even on agenda for state legislators. Like in many other states, gambling online is classified as a misdemeanor although there are barely any cases of the state going after individual players.

Also, like in many other states that don’t have authorized online gambling lobbies, the residents have two options:

• To go and gamble online in those states where it is legally permitted.
• To wager online from the comfort of one’s home or from portable devices at international online lobbies.

Live casinos that accept Wisconsin: things to know

There are two options to gamble online — by depositing USD or crypto. In many cases, and specifically for the American market, digital cash may be a better option. Since the banks are sensitive to all gambling-related transactions from and to the cards and bank accounts, players may be facing anywhere from inconveniences and declined transactions to blocked accounts.

With crypto, which is a decentralized currency, things are much simpler. Almost all great Wisconsin-friendly online casinos will have at least BTC (and its alternatives, such as LTC, DGC, ETH, etc). This makes it so much easier to deposit and so much cheaper and faster to withdraw the wins.

As for the games, players from Wisconsin will be able to place bets on live roulette, blackjack, and baccarat, as well as a few table pokers. Game shows are currently not available via any of the live dealer developers that we know but we are sure it is just a matter of time before such releases arrive.

In the Badger State, several state divisions are taking care of regulating the industry. There is the Wisconsin Division of Gaming, as well as the National Indian Gaming Commission, and the Office of Charitable Gaming. All three rely on the Wisconsin Constitution and Wisconsin Statutes.

The age for gambling in the state is 18 for betting, lottery, and charitable gambling, and 21 to visit casinos. Revenues from the lottery surplus and from charitable gambling are routed to fund charitable purposes. As for the Tribal casinos, the tax is determined by the State-Tribe compacts.

Land-Based Casinos in Wisconsin

The destiny of land-based casinos in Wisconsin was determined back in 1991. The state signed Class III gaming compacts with 11 Indian Tribes, reaching an agreement to supply players with slot machines and table games on the floors of these gambling venues. To be more specific, compacts provide video slot and video poker machines, as well as live blackjack, pull tabs, bingo, and other games.

Speaking of blackjack, it must not be conducted over 18 hours per day. As for other restrictions, the maximum bets on electronic games should not exceed 5 USD per round. Wisconsin also has an interesting approach to taxing players. The Tribe must collect personal income taxes from those players who are residents of the state but do not belong to a Tribe.

As to legalizing commercially operated brick and mortar casinos, a few attempts were undercut by Governor Kim Doyle.

Pari-Mutuel Betting in Wisconsin

While pari-mutuel betting is legal in the state of Wisconsin, the last remaining racetrack was closed in 2009. The reasons were financial. This means that while greyhound racing — as appalling to some as it is — is legal but there are no locations to hold the races.

Many would argue that racetracks for horse racing could’ve been saved if Wisconsin was more lenient towards merging them with electronic games and turning them into racinos. However, legislators declined any such discussions.

With racetracks closed, a few isolated racing events are taking place during the year. This means that live wagering is on. Simulcast wagering is the option covered by Tribal casinos — they are allowed to provide such a gambling service.

All other types of sports betting not mentioned by the state will be considered a Class B Misdemeanor. There are talks of sports betting being authorized in Tribal compacts.

Lotteries in Wisconsin

The lottery remains one of the biggest go-to betting activities for the residents of the state. Per year, it generates over 700 million USD worth of revenues. At the same time, it returns back about 60% or so.

The state of Wisconsin owns the monopoly to the lottery and sells licenses to commercially operated companies to provide the sales. Plural, in this case, is maybe a bit of an overstatement since GTech is a well-known operator across America and is also a bit of a monopolist. It manages lotteries alongside the government in many states, and Wisconsin is no exception. In 2015, it applied for a 7-year license to operate in the Badger State.

In addition to the in-state events, residents of Wisconsin can participate in national draws, including Powerball.