Ohio Sports Gaming Requires Casino Commission License

R.C. 3775.03(A)(1) makes licensure the precondition for offering sports gaming in Ohio: no person may operate, conduct, or assist in operating or conducting sports gaming without first obtaining an appropriate sports gaming license from the Ohio Casino Control Commission. Division (A)(2) carves out one exception, the State Lottery Commission does not need a sports gaming license to run lottery sports gaming under R.C. 3770.23 to 3770.25, the kiosk-style product sold through licensed lottery retailers.

Chapter 3775 defines three proprietor license types (R.C. 3775.01, 3775.04). A Type A license, capped at 25 statewide, authorizes online sports pools, mobile and web wagering. A Type B license, capped at 40, authorizes wagering at a physical sports gaming facility, in person or at on-site terminals. A Type C license, at least 2 but not more than 20, authorizes self-service or clerk-operated sports gaming terminals placed inside third-party "Type C sports gaming host" locations such as bars, fraternal organizations, and bowling alleys. Each license runs for a five-year term.

Application costs scale steeply by tier. Type A applicants pay an initial license fee of $500,000 to $2,500,000, with $125,000-$625,000 annual renewals depending on organizational structure and use of a management services provider. Type B proprietors pay $50,000-$100,000 up front and $10,000 annually. Type C proprietors pay $100,000 initially and $25,000 to renew. Every applicant must also submit a certified public accountant's audit of its financial condition for the prior fiscal year and pay the background-check fees set under R.C. 109.572.

The Casino Control Commission holds exclusive regulatory jurisdiction under R.C. 3775.02, including rulemaking on wagering procedures, mandatory age verification at 21, responsible-gaming and voluntary self-exclusion programs, sports integrity monitoring, and pre-approval of all sports gaming equipment through independent laboratory testing. No Ohio municipality separately licenses or bans sports gaming, regulation is entirely statewide.

Operating, conducting, or assisting unlicensed sports gaming is a fifth-degree felony for a first offense and a fourth-degree felony for any subsequent offense under R.C. 3775.99(B); the statute also declares premises used for unlawful sports gaming a nuisance subject to abatement. Falsifying a license application or permitting a minor to wager is a first-degree misdemeanor on a first offense, escalating to a fifth-degree felony on repeat violations. Bribing a commission member or gaming official is a third-degree felony carrying license revocation and permanent disqualification from public office.