North Carolina launches online sports betting ahead of March Madness

North Carolina (WPDE) — Online sports betting launches in just a few days.

The Tar Heel State is the to

Chief Financial Officer for BETMGM Gary Deutsch said around 90% of men participate in online sports betting.

“We’ve been excited about the timing because of March Madness. North Carolina is obviously a famous basketball state. So, we’re excited to see a lot of players engage through basketball," Deutsch said.

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He said it will create a sense of community and bring people together, especially with March Madness approaching.

"It’s going to create fun. It’s a source of conversation. It’s a source of community in the sense that you’ll see people gathering to watch games. I think it’s going to add a lot of fun to the community," Deutsch said.

last year, and now those 21 and above can register, but only if you're physically in the state.

Deutsch said there's been heavy consumer demand for the activity to be legalized.

“It’s tapping into what’s been a long-term American interest in sports betting. It’s taking into legal, safe territory activities that have been happening on the black market for years. There’s obviously consumer demand," he said.

Deutsch said the legalization of online sports betting is huge for North Carolina's government because of the tax revenue that will be collected, and also for those building businesses around sports betting.

“It’s taking this desire and putting it into a legal industry that’s run by professionals, that’s regulated and safe. So, it’s been a huge success across the country both for governments and for companies that are involved in building businesses around sports betting...We’re giving people the chance to engage in an activity that millions of people love and do it on their own terms. And do it in a way that the local communities win because of the tax dollars it all generates," he said.

, you can bet on college, professional, or amateur sports.

High school sports, politics, award shows, betting on injuries and penalties, and replay review outcomes are not options.

Deutsch said there are a few different ways to make a wager, and BETMGM is one of the seven online sportsbooks in North Carolina, and there are several different ways you can make wagers such as single-game wagers and parlays.

“Classic bets that people are familiar with. What’s happening online is there’s a huge number of what I would call exotic bets in the realm of parlays, when you’re combining events. There’s also something called player proposition bets, or people will call them prop bets," he added.

He said there's a brief security check when you first sign up.

“On the website or through the app, you gotta enter information- you do have to put in your social security number. We have to run what’s called a know your customer check, a KYC, to do essentially a check that there’s not a money laundering risk associated with the person. And then the vast majority of people clear that quickly. And then they proceed to enter money into their account, typically through a debit card or pre-paid cards. And then they got money in their wallet on the account so it’s like prefunding an Amazon account before you’ve made any purchases," Deutsch said.

If you'd like to participate in online sports betting, you'll need to download and install whichever sportsbook app you choose, register your account, and then place your first wager.

“A sportsbook is a place you can bet, and we’re essentially the person you’re betting with on the other side, so you know you’ll get your bet. So, classically, if you wanted to bet prior to legalization, you had to find a friend or someone who wanted to take the other side of the bet. So, I want to bet $100 on the Panthers, well I need to find somebody who wants to bet $100 on the other side. So, in this example, we’re the other side," he said.

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ABC15 asked Deutsch how they plan on targeting those who may try and use a VPN to change their location to make it seem like they're in North Carolina even if they're not physically there.

He said there are a few companies they use to specifically defeat and track those VPNs.

“There are a number of tools around the geolocation mission. So, there’s a couple companies we use that set out to defeat and sniff out VPNs. Obviously from a mobile phone standpoint, you’re riding off the GPS in your phone. People who are sitting at a computer in New York and trying to pretend they’re in North Carolina through a VPN, we have tools on the platform that sniff out that," he said.

Deutsch said if you're using a desktop computer, there are multiple tools in their platform to double-check people's geological location.

He said if you're using your phone, the GPS on it will track you.

Online betting launches on Monday, March 11.