Where Can I Bet on College Football Legally?

For the longest time, you could only bet on NCAA football in Nevada, but these days more and more states have opened up the ability to bet on sports, including college football. But even with these developments, not all states are open to sports betting, and among those, there are some restrictions when it comes to betting on collegiate sports. 

This betting guide will cover any questions you might have about if, where, how, and when you can start betting on College Football.

Since sports betting has become legalized by the Supreme Court with the PASPA ruling the decision was left to individual states to make the choice whether or not they wanted to have it within their boundaries. Many have since legalized and those include, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and several others. 

Notably, some states have restrictions on sports bettors wagering on collegiate sports. States that have some form of college sports wagering restrictions include New Jersey, which has a ban on in-state events, and Nevada. The Nevada ban has since been lifted. 

Wherever you are you can trust the app store and your major brand sportsbook of choice to only provide you with 100% legal betting options wherever you are located. Major sportsbooks like DraftKings rely on cutting edge geo-targeting technology to ensure that they are not providing illegal betting options to sports bettors. To see the best sportsbooks in your state keep reading!

Can You Bet on College Football With Offshore Sportsbooks?

While you can technically do this it is highly advised that you do not because when you place bets with an offshore sportsbook there are risks. Firstly, it is most likely illegal to engage in offshore sports betting in our state, and if it is not then there are still risks involved. 

The biggest risk aside from breaking the law will be the loss of your money. Since an offshore bookmaker is not located in the United States there is nobody to enforce them to payout your winnings. 

What if My State Doesn’t Allow Betting on College Football?

Some states have yet to pass sports betting legislation and others that do allow such activities put restrictions on betting on collegiate sports. If you live in one of these states then unfortunately there is not much you can do aside from traveling to states that do offer legal sports betting.

Many resident bettors of New York City are known to make the trip to nearby sports betting friendly New Jersey in order to place legal bets on sports including college football games with mobile betting apps that are legal in New Jersey but not in New York meaning that revenue from NCAAF betting that would be going to the NY State coffers is instead going to the NJ coffers.

How to Bet on College Football Legally? 

Want to partake in NCAA football betting? We’ve got you covered. First of all, you need to make sure that your state has approved in your state. If you are living in a state like New Jersey then this isn’t as an issue, however, if you live in Utah, where sports betting is very much against the law, then you may be having a problem. Check out our overview of the United States legal sports betting map to check out your state.  

After you confirm that you have access to sports wagering in your state you’ll need to find the best college football betting apps available to you and take your pick of the litter. Sportsbooks often compete with each other to offer the best sign-up bonuses and offer so you’ll have some nice incentives to choose one over another.

Best Sportsbooks for College Football Betting Apps

Due to the competitive nature of sportsbooks vying against each other for customers in regulated states nearly all legal betting apps are going to have marginal differences when it comes to the specific sports you want to wager on. With that being said they are not all completely the same and have different interfaces and slightly different focuses when it comes to the sports they cover. 

This article lists the best sportsbook apps available in states that have legalized sports betting. Scroll down to find your state

Legal Betting Sites for College Football

The following are your options by the state for legal sportsbooks that you can use for NCAA football betting. Scroll down until you see your state and check out what is available to you. If you don’t see your state then check out our state pages for more info! 

How to Bet on College Football Legally in New Jersey?

In the world of sports betting New Jersey is known for being the state that legalized sports betting for everyone else with the Supreme Court PASAPA decision. With that in mind, New Jersey residents have a robust market of competitive sports betting sites offering competitive sign-up bonuses and welcome offers in order to try to get your business.  

Best Sports Betting Sites in NJ

Is College Football Betting Legal in Colorado? 

When it comes to legal Colorado sports betting, you can bet on most college sports with some restrictions. There is a holding place on prop bets on college sports in the state, meaning that those betting options won’t be available to you when you log into your online sportsbooks of choice. 

Best Sports Betting Sites in CO

Is Sports Betting on College Football Legal in IL?

Illinois with its queen city Chicago is set when it comes to professional football in the NFL with teams like the Chicago Bears, but when it comes to NCAA football teams Illinois residents cheer on their beloved Northwestern University Wildcats and other big ten teams that call the state home. 

Bettors in Illinois have a lot of great choices when it comes to finding good college football betting sites. Most of the largest and best sportsbooks in the United States are present in IL, check out our list to find the one that is right for you.

Is College Football Betting Legal in West Virginia?

West Virginia may not be able to boast having the best NCAA football programs in the US, but their beloved West Virginia Mountaineers Football program has landed seven Heisman Trophy candidates in the past, with one of them going on to be a finalist. The relatively nearby Clemson Tigers are also a source of contention for bettors in the Mountain State.

West Virginian sports bettors looking for a piece of the action have the following sportsbooks they can sign up with to start college football betting today. 

Is Sports Betting on College Football legal in Indiana? 

Indiana legal sports betting went live Oct. 2019 when the bill was signed into law. Indiana is home to the famous Notre Dame NCAAF football team, one of the greatest sports dynasties in the entire United States. Notre Dame has been college football champions an impressive thirteen times in their history, with their last big win being in 1988. 

As of today bettors in the Hoosier state have great options when it comes to sports betting, and before neighboring Illinois legalized many residents of that state found themselves traveling to Indiana to get a piece of the action. 

Is College Football Betting Legal in Pennsylvania? 

Pennsylvania college football is some of the best in the country with some of the largest Universities in the US calling the state home. The greatest of these schools being Penn State, the owner of one of the top collegiate football programs in the nation and one of the most motivated fan bases.

As of the 2020 season Penn State has the highest number of former players playing for the NFL that it has had in fifteen years with a total of 38 Penn State Football alumni playing in the NFL. 

Is NCAA sports betting legal in Iowa? 

Iowa college football is some of the best in the nation with teams such as Drake University, Iowa State University, University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa. In 1958 Iowa State shared the National Championship with LSU in which they had to share the now-defunct Grantland Rice Award. At the moment the Iowa Hawkeye Athletic Director, Gary Barta, is the Chair of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. 

Legal sports betting came to Iowa in May 2019 and has since flourished. Betting options in Iowa, when it comes to online sportsbooks are very good with all of the major sportsbooks being present in the state. 

Is College Football Betting legal in Nevada? 

Placing bets in Nevada is like betting nowhere else in the world. Having legalized sports betting in 1949 Nevada is by the far the state that has the most mature sports betting scene in the United States. 

Nevada is also a yearly major Las Vegas Bowl that comes to the state to bring teams from the Mountain West Conference and the Pac-12 Conference together to duke it out. 

In Nevada, the Nevada Wolf Pack from the University of Nevada in Reno is one of the most popular teams in the state. 

Is College Football Betting legal in Tennessee? 

If you’re living in Tennessee then you know that there is not bigger game than the one happening at the University of Tennessee’s Tennessee Volunteers Football Stadium. The Volunteers aren’t the only team in the state. The Volunteers share the state with ten other division one football teams so those of you in TN have some options. 

Tenneessee is one of the states that has most recently legalized sports betting having approved the activity after November 1st 2020. If you want to get started betting then you have a few options, check out the table below to find the option that is best for you. 

Is College Football Betting legal in Michigan? 

Legal sports betting came to Michigan when Gov. Whitmer signed the Lawful Sports Betting Act into law. This made it so that people in Michigan could participate in legal sports betting. 

Michigan has one of the largest stadiums in the world for their beloved Michigan Wolverines at the Michigan Stadium, called the Big House, but they will also soon have lots of different options since online sports betting is going live in 2021. 

States With Impressive NCAA Programs and Fan Bases

States With Impressive NCAA Football Programs and fanatical fan bases. College Football has a way of generating local pride in a way that major leagues like the NBA, NFL, and MLB just can’t do. These teams are nearly immune to the buying and selling of franchises that are so rampant in the major leagues since they are anchored to Universities meaning that they have more uninterrupted time to gather fantastical grassroots support in their areas. Below are some well-known teams and the states they call home. 

Click any of the states below to read more about the legality of and options for sports betting inside of them. 

Common Types of College Football Betting

Sports bets are fun but there are many different types so it is important to know them all so that you can start betting before the regular season is over.  

Point Spread / Spread Bets. A point spread bet is a bet where the odds have been adjusted in order to make the odds more equal, it essentially acts like a handicap so that you can still bet on a vastly inferior underdog team to “beat the spread” or exceed a certain amount of points. This makes it so that you can bet on any team in a match even if one team is projected to win with 100% certainty. to learn more check out our guide on point spread betting. 

NCAAF Moneyline / Moneyline Bets. Moneyline bets are a straightforward type of bet where you are simply picking the winner of a game. Check out our guide on moneyline betting to learn more. 

Over/Under Betting.Over/under bets are a type of bet where you are wagering on the combined total of both teams. With over/under bets you are making a prediction on whether or not two combined teams will exceed or remain under a certain number of points.

Prop Bet / Proposition Betting. Prop bets are one of the most fun ways of wagering on the college football season. Prop bets are bets that look at the likelihood of a specific circumstance happening or not. A famous instance of a prop bet would be whether or not a coin toss will land on heads or tails. Check out our guide on proposition betting to learn more. 

Parlay Bets. A parlay bet is one that is a lot harder to win but the rewards can be much greater. Parlay betting is difficult because you are wagering that several things will all happen the way you predict, and if any of your predictions are wrong then you lose the whole bet. Our parlay betting guide can help you get the edge. 

Live Betting. Live betting is exactly what it sounds like. Live betting is betting on a game that is taking place live. Most live betting happens with online betting platforms such as sportsbook apps. Live betting can be a fun way to engage with your favorite team, be careful because the betting odds and betting lines are known to change dramatically and frequently during live betting as oddsmakers are constantly adjusting them in reaction to what is going on on-screen. Live betting can be hard, read our guide on live betting to learn more. 

Futures Bets. Futures bets are bets predicting the outcome of games such as the anticipated Bowl Games, who will win the National Championship, or even who you predict will win the next Heisman Trophy. Knowledge is power, our guide on futures bets can help you get a leg up.