West Virginia seeks to legalise esports betting

Introduced last week, House Bill 4826 would expand West Virginia’s legal sports wagering market and allow consumers to bet on esports events.

The bill classes an esports event as an “electronic sport or competitive video game played as a game of skill for spectators”.

West Virginia delegates Moore Capito, Bennett Queen, Steve Westfall, Shawn Fluharty, Clay Riley and Daniel Linville have declared their support for the amendment and are sponsoring the bill.

HB 4826 was sent to the House Finance Committee for further discussion.

West Virginia was one of the first US states to legalise sports betting following the repeal of PASPA, launching online and retail wagering in August 2018.

Players in the state are currently able to wager on both professional and collegiate sports events and competitions.