Oregon – Online Casinos & Gambling Regulations

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Citizens of the Beaver State might not be able to legally play online, however, that doesn’t mean that sites are inaccessible. People adamant about playing online are still able to do so thanks to overseas operations. These sites will generally be licensed to operate in territories abroad, although it is the local or federal government’s responsibility to block access to these sites. As the government is unable to do so, players are still able to access the sites even from restricted territories. This does however come with increased potentials of risk due to the lack of legal recourse actionable by players, as well as the general lack of oversight that a dedicated gambling authority would normally be responsible for.

• Is the casino licensed?
• What is the reputation of the licensing body?
• What do reviews say about the casino?
• Does the site offer any loyalty programs?
• Will you be able to use your preferred payment methods?

There is always an element of risk when depositing at a first for the first time. Not knowing their reputation, features and any letdowns that may be present can seriously impede your enjoyment and can add up to create a regretful experience. To help avoid this we recommend you check out our casino reviews here at GoodLuckMate where we provide concise and comprehensive critiques of each site.

Gambling Regulation

Oregon’s state lottery has been running for decades and is also in charge of sports betting. The lottery’s authority over sports betting goes all the way back to 1987 where players were first allowed to make selections of parlays in NFL games. This would however end up being outright banned five years later. It wasn’t until 2018 that the Supreme Court abolished the restriction of sports betting across the country, allowing each state to formulate its own independent regulations. This naturally led to many states quickly setting up regulations to facilitate this now authorized activity. This often led to each state’s lottery authority for taking over responsibility, which was the case for Oregon who offers both retail and online services.

Unfortunately, the same kind of momentum never occurred for online casinos. Only a handful of states have fully regulated online casino markets, while most are evidenced as having no interest in making any changes anytime soon. Social casinos are therefore the only form of online casino action legally available in Oregon, although as previously mentioned, overseas operations are still very much present.

Localized Online Casinos

Localized features are generally present for people playing from regulated territories. The US is in a unique position though, as standard industry practices align well with US players. English is the default language of the industry and US dollars are widely used as a substitute for currencies that the site is unable to support. Players from across the US are therefore able to benefit from these features without being specifically targeted with them. Large US events like the Superbowl and elections are also heavily represented. Promotional content is where things will get a lot more difficult for US players, as even sites that allow US players to register, tend not to outright advertise to those players. That is why it is recommended to instead find a good loyalty program that rewards all players regardless of their location.

Gambling with US Dollars

The US dollar has often been used as the primary currency for making transactions internationally. The majority of operations do not have the resources to manage payments from every single national currency, however, and that is why they instead choose to offer US dollars a default option. This allows those people whose currency is not supported to still play with the casino, although at the cost of conversion fees. The wide availability of the currency means it actually harder to find a site that doesn’t support US dollars. Depositing your money is done via a range of payment methods that you can choose from, differing from site to site. The most commonly available methods include Visa, MasterCard, e-wallets and various bank transfer options. Over the past few years, cryptocurrencies have seen more common usage, due to their ability to make fast unobstructed payments online, as well as their discreet nature.

Casinos in Oregon

Like many other US states, Oregon does have a large land-based casino scene, thanks to a change in federal regulations during the late 80s. This saw the opening of numerous casinos across the country during the mid-90s, all of which is run by various Native American tribes. This change in the law means that there are now nine tribally run casinos in Oregon alone. 

While this was generally seen as a positive move, it did have an unfortunate side-effect of halting any progress towards opening up online casino regulations. Doing so would open up direct competition with the tribally run operations, which would be seen as an insult to the current agreement. The sad thing is, that the competition is still there from overseas sites and any revenues they gain from US players do not benefit the local business or the state government. Lawmakers appear to be content with keeping the status quo, despite the success stories of other states passing complete regulations like Pennsylvania and New Jersey.