The total amount bet on sports in North Carolina through its legal operators in 2026 has grown more than 6% over the previous year. The rise comes as state lawmakers look to increase the tax rate on the operators to raise additional revenue in a budget being negotiated now.
Bettors wagered more than $561 million in total bets in May, according to the state lottery commission’s monthly report on gambling activity. It is the ninth consecutive month that bettors in the state have wagered more than $500 million.
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Budget negotiators have agreed to raise the tax rate paid by operators from its current 18% to 23%, people familiar with the negotiations have told WRAL. WRAL has previously reported on lawmakers’ negotiations over raising the tax rate. Budget negotiations are ongoing.
Sports betting has generated more than $299 million in taxes since its launch in March 2024 off more than $1.6 billion in gross wagering revenue for the operators. Had North Carolina implemented a 23% tax rate from the beginning, the state would have collected an additional $83 million in tax. North Carolina’s state budget is more than $32 billion.
The money goes to gambling addiction treatment and education, youth sports across the state, a Major Events, Games and Attractions Fund, athletics departments at 13 UNC System universities (but not North Carolina or NC State) and the state’s general fund, which is used to pay for education, public safety, transportation and health care among other things.
Gambling activity and revenue have exceeded the state’s initial projections.
“It’s been a tremendously successful policy in this state,” House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, said in recent weeks. “A lot of people apparently like to do that sort of thing for one reason or another.”
Between January and May of 2025, bettors in the state bet $3.0 billion. In the same months this year, it’s $3.2 billion in bets. Since March 2024, North Carolina bettors have wagered more than $15 billion on sports through the legal operators.
The Sports Betting Alliance, a lobbying group for sports betting operators, has pushed back on the tax increase.
"This tax hike will only penalize licensed, regulated companies who have delivered hundreds of millions in tax revenue to the state and the UNC System athletic departments,” the group said in a statement to WRAL. “We urge state leaders to instead focus on strengthening the legal framework that protects players, supports jobs, and keeps illegal and unregulated operators out of North Carolina."
WRAL's documentary unit took a closer look at sports betting in North Carolina in "The Gamble," which can be viewed here.
Sports betting in the state follows a typical annual pattern with March, October and November being the biggest months for wagering. Betting activity has slowed in the summer months of June, July and August in the first two years of legalization, but soccer’s World Cup will be played this summer across the United States and North America, which could generate a bump.
Outside of one anomalous month — April 2024, buoyed by massive promotional offers from the operators to attract customers — sports betting totals have been higher each month than the corresponding month in previous years.
For example, in May 2024 there was $525 million in total wagers, which climbed to $562 million in May 2025 and $578 million in 2026. The Carolina Hurricanes' run in the NHL playoffs may have contributed to the increase, but the state doesn't provide more specific information about wagering such as which operators take the most bets or what sports or teams are the most wagered on. View a chart of month by month totals here.