The sports world will descend on Bryant-Denney Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama this weekend. That’s where the Crimson Tide will host the Georgia Bulldogs — a game that’s not only must-see for college football lovers, but practically must-bet.
Georgia is ranked No. 2 nationally, while Alabama is No. 4. Both powerhouses are expected to be title contenders this season, but losing this early would certainly rock those championship hopes, adding to the stakes.
But here’s the thing: bettors won’t be able to get in on the fun inside either of the two states where the teams come from. Georgia sports betting is banned, and Alabama sports betting is too.
Alabama had sports betting inside of a 2024 bill. However, that bill was gutted to remove sports wagering but moved forward with a lottery (the bill never passed but sports betting was directly targeted early on). In Georgia, a betting bill has been kicked around the last three legislative years to zero avail.
By not having legalized betting, both states are leaving serious money on the table — not just this weekend, but for the rest of the year. Let’s dig into those potential losses:
Since the College Football Playoff started in 2024, five out of the ten national champions have either been Alabama or Georgia. What’s more, at least seven of those games featured one of the two SEC stalwarts. Last year’s game would’ve likely made it eight but Alabama beat Georgia in the SEC title game to knock them out before it could happen.
So yes, both Alabama and Georgia have collectively run the college sport for a decade now. That means Saturday’s meeting will be the talk of the nation — even now that Nick Saban is no longer with the Tide. But it’s still Bama and it’s still the Dawgs.
When you’re this successful, you become big draws in both betting and TV. The latter of which is easy to prove since TV ratings are made public.
During the 2023 college football season, both programs finished in the top-5 in terms of average TV viewers over the season:
- Ohio State Buckeyes – 5.55 million viewers per game
- Alabama Crimson Tide – 5.08 million viewers per game
- Michigan Wolverines – 4.78 million viewers per game
- Colorado Buffaloes – 4.50 million viewers per game
- Georgia Bulldogs – 3.95 million viewers per game
Given how prevalent sports gambling ads are on TV these days, you just know a good chunk of these viewers are also putting money into the games they’re watching.
Millions Being Lost Without Betting
We wouldn’t be shocked to think this matchup becomes the most bet-on regular season game this season — and probably more bet-on than most CFP games later this year now that the field is 12 teams.
But just how much money will be gambled with? Well, we don’t know for sure, but we can make some guesstimates. Here’s a quote from a recent ESPN article that really puts things into perspective:
“Conservatively, more than $1 billion is bet annually on college football. A big college football game — especially early in the season when bettors’ bankrolls are at their starting point — can attract tens of millions of dollars in bets around the nation…State gaming regulators do not specify the amount wagered or revenue on college football, instead lumping betting data on both NCAA and the NFL into one ‘football’ category. In 2019, Nevada and New Jersey, home to the two largest legal betting markets in the U.S., combined to win approximately $175 million off around $3 billion in football bets. Nevada bookmakers say the college game accounts for 45-55% of their football handle, while, in New Jersey, operators say the NFL attracts about twice as much money as college football at the state’s largest sportsbooks.”
You read that? An early-season NCAA game — we’re barely in week 4 right — of this magnitude attracts tens of millions of dollars. That’s no chump change, folks.
However, the number is probably larger due to offshore betting. Revenue that’s bet outside of legal sportsbooks doesn’t factor into state revenue figures. However, the offshore sportsbook market is thriving, especially in states like Georgia and Alabama. That leads us to our final section.
How To Bet Alabama vs. Georgia Anyway
Reading this in Alabama? Georgia? Or another state where betting is either not allowed or just heavily restricted? Then we urge you to visit an offshore sportsbook and get action on this game there.
Offshore betting sites work perfectly fine across the country — and we mean perfectly. This is because they don’t operate out of the United States. That allows them to circumvent not only federal rules but state regulations as well. This means bettors inside of Alabama and Georgia can freely use them inside their states.
And trust us, offshore sportsbooks are safe and sometimes even better options than regulated bookies like DraftKings or Caesars. Here’s a list of our favorite offshore betting sites worth scoping out first:
