If you’re between the ages of 18 and 20 and live in the United States, you don’t really have any viable brick-and-mortar or online iGaming access.
In the states that have retail casinos, you won’t have access to any of the classic casino games you’re interested in. Sure, some states have Class II tribal casinos that accept players at 18 and up, but they don’t host traditional games like slots, blackjack, roulette, craps, baccarat, etc.
The best you’ll get at venues like these are bingo, raffles, and scratchers with low-dollar payouts.
And in the five states that offer online casino games within their borders (DE, MI, NJ, PA, WV), you’ve got to be at least 21 to play.
Of course, that’s not a problem, because most reputable online casinos that operate outside of US jurisdiction can legally accept American players at 18 and up.
These 18+ online casinos have been in business for decades, and they remain our favorite places to play, even compared against the local options we have in our state.
The online games are more varied, come with the same (or better) chances to win that you’d get in commercial districts like Las Vegas or Atlantic City, and offer extra perks for players using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and others.
However, if you’ve been looking for a place to play over the Internet, you may have come across a term called “no account casinos.”
While the phrasing is a bit anti-PR – What kinda varmint wants to gamble with some durn no account casino?! – it actually makes sense.
So what are no account casinos?
Well, in this context, they’re most assuredly not no account casinos.
That is, they aren’t two-bit operations up to no good and ready to skedaddle down that dusty trail come sunup, with all your money in tow.
Here, no account casinos are those operators that make it extremely easy to set up an account, usually by having account creation autogenerated based on the checking or debit data used when making your first deposit.
This is becoming a popular option at domestic USA casinos, because many members simply wish to get gambling ASAP.
Having to jump through more hoops to make yet another Internet account for still another Internet service is a turn-off these days, and anything that streamlines that process is going to be viewed favorably.
Of course, these domestic no account casinos are – as you’ve likely guessed – still limited to those aged 21 and up. And they probably always will be.
If you’re 18-20 years old, even if you live in one of the few states with domestic iGaming (or one of the 20 or so states with domestic sports betting), you won’t be able to take advantage.
That’s because this no account thing can’t really work with overseas or international betting sites.
Yet.
The holdup here and now is largely due to the fact that such sites still accept a wide range of banking options, many of which are legacy methods that require strict compliance with the federal UIGEA banking law.
Having a system in place that would allow members to directly link their US-based bank accounts to international service providers is a non-starter per the UIGEA. It simply cannot work logistically.
However, one workaround – which a few up-and-coming sites do look like they’re flirting with in the near term – is one-click registration when gambling with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Still, this only works at venues that exclusively take crypto deposits and exclusively deliver crypto payouts.
Since such is not yet the norm (as millions of US players still haven’t embraced cryptocurrency, while curious others may be daunted by the extra legwork and learning curves involved in buying, storing, and trading crypto), all the best sites for 18 and up casino gambling, 18 and up sports betting, and 18 and up poker have yet to implement such simple registration processes.
That time is certainly coming, but it’s a bit ironic that this is the first time that domestic US gaming operators have actually been able to offer a process that is fundamentally simpler than that available at the top offshore venues.
Once no account online casinos become the norm, of course, it will be much easier to quickly and anonymously gamble online.
Instead of having to register with your name, address, phone number, birthdate, email address, and proof of residence (typically in the form of a photo ID or a utility bill), legitimate international gambling sites of the future will have instant registration.
All you’ll do is tap the “Sign-Up” or “Join” button, and you’ll get an encrypted, randomized username and password. Then, you’ll simply make a crypto deposit using any number of secure alternative currencies, and you’ll be able to wager.
And since payouts will be handled exclusively via crypto, too, all you’ll ever need to claim your winnings is a crypto receiving wallet.
Everything will be anonymous, secure, and quantum-hacking-resistant. You’ll still need to pay taxes on your winnings, of course, but other than that, there will be no meddling middlemen.
In theory and in practice, no account online casinos will mirror common brick-and-mortars, where anyone can walk in, buy some chips, and get gambling. No lengthy registration process, no nonsense.
The only thing missing is the comped drinks.
Once this type of no account casino finally launches – and once it becomes the norm – you can expect online overseas gambling sites to offer even better bonuses, better casino game payouts, smaller poker tournament buy-ins, and more valuable odds on just about every line.
There will be no more overhead for your site when it comes to cutting checks, processing Visa or Mastercard transactions, or anything else having to do with the tedium of traditional banking.
That savings, in part, will be passed on to you.
But the biggest savings will be time, not money.
Which, incidentally, means you’ll have more time to win more money at the best online 18+ gambling sites!