Ny Legal Sports Betting

A sports betting launch in New York would be huge. We all know that. New York has a massive population with over 18 million citizens inhabiting it. For perspective, New York is fourth in the entire country in total population according to the US Census Bureau.

The rumors come strongly fueled by Governor Andrew Cuomo saying in a recent press conference that the heavily indebted state could look to sports betting for tax dollars.

New York is not the only state that could look to legalize sports betting in the near future. Virginia, Michigan, Maryland, and Missouri are just a few states that plan to legalize or launch sports betting in 2021. Company valuations will skyrocket if New York launched online sports betting in the near future. With nearly 43 percent of the state’s population in New York City, it is crucial for New York sports betting to include mobile wagering. If not, those residents will continue to travel out-of-state to place their bets. The current legislative session ends on June 19. Therefore, S 17 may be the state’s last chance to get legal sports betting.

Senator Abbabbo spoke with our own Chris Gerlacher about the excitement of potentially adding mobile sports betting. The state is badly in need of revenue with the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the state extremely hard.

Companies Are Chomping At The Bit For New York Sports Betting

As 2021 kicks off, Penn National Gaming has received the highest target rating in its history. At a whopping $101 target, Bank of America is exceedingly optimistic that 2021 will be a big year for gambling. However, this might not be all that outlandish.

Currently sitting at $92 per share, rumors of impending legalization from other states (mainly New York) are changing the way analysts value these companies.

New York is not the only state that could look to legalize sports betting in the near future. Virginia, Michigan, Maryland, and Missouri are just a few states that plan to legalize or launch sports betting in 2021.

Company valuations will skyrocket if New York launched online sports betting in the near future. This is why companies must be prepared on a moment’s notice so they can get to the market quickly.

Sportsbooks Prepared To Launch First In New York

Here are some of the top sportsbook brands we anticipate would be the first to launch in New York if legalization comes to pass. This is because of their overall market share in the US, their ability to be the first to launch in other states, or their connection to New York.

BetMGM Sportsbook

  • BetMGM owns Yonkers Raceway and Empire City Casino in New York. They have a rock-solid foundation in New York. The expectation is they would be one of the first companieses to operate a sportsbook in New York.

DraftKings Sportsbook

  • DraftKings Sportsbook is perhaps the largest online sportsbooks in the country. They also operate a retail location at the del Lago Resort and Casino in Waterloo. They will use this as a clear partnership to obtain a license and prepare to launch in New York as soon as they are cleared.

FanDuel Sportsbook

  • FanDuel has serious roots in New Jersey and New York. The at-the-time Attorney General Andrew Cuomo battled FanDuel and DraftKings over the legality of Daily Fantasy Sports in the state. They obviously won the case and are now operating a physical location in Tioga Downs Casino. Having a partnership in the state is the fast track to operating a mobile sportsbook in New York.

BetRivers Sportsbook

  • BetRivers operates Rivers Sportsbook in Schenectady, New York. They have a history of launching first in states that they operate. They will be prepared when sports betting is available in New York.

Close, But Not Quite Ready

William Hill/Caesars Entertainment

  • Caesars Entertainment is set to buy William Hill within the calendar year. Caesars is preparing for New York as they are attempting to build a casino resort in New York. The current proposal would be for Caesars to build a $750 million casino 55 miles away from New York City.
  • If the proposal were to go through, Caesars would have a quick opportunity to get William Hill sportsbook operational. They are one of the largest sportsbooks in the country and backed by an international reputation for sports betting.

Not Quite Ready For New York Sports Betting Launch

These sportsbook brands are expanding rapidly across the US, but do not have a current presence in New York State. The rules are not set yet in New York as to whether these sportsbook brands would need to partner with a local retail casino, but that is a common requirement in almost every state with legal online sports betting.

PointsBet Sportsbook

  • PointsBet does not have a clear route to a partnership in New York. The young sportsbook would need to reach an agreement with a casino in New York before they could launch. They have a partnership with NBC which could help them land a partnership with a casino.

Golden Nugget Online Sportsbook

  • Golden Nugget does not operate any retail locations in New York. Furthermore, they are in the process of merging with Landcadia Holdings. Once this is complete, they will work to expanding their reach past just New Jersey and Nevada.

Barstool Sportsbook/Penn National Gaming

  • PENN does not own or operate a casino in New York at this time. There does not appear to be any movement in this area yet. They could look to partner with any of the remaining casinos if given a green light.

Living in New York means you have plenty of access to bookies, though these have historically been extensions of criminal enterprises and are surely not legal sportsbooks for New York residents. Since not paying your debts can result in broken legs or worse, we do not recommend you gamble with these criminals and thugs. That said, sports betting has been nominally legal in NY for many years, and in 2019, the first actual brick-and-mortar sports betting lounges opened in upstate NY’s four new commercial casinos. Since domestic online wagering is not legal in New York and will likely require a public referendum, you will not be able to conveniently place bets with these upstate venues using your iPhone, Android, desktop, or laptop computers.

In order to wager at licensed NY betting operators, you will have to physically make your way to these books. These are located in Monticello at Resorts World Catskills, in Nichols at Tioga Downs Casino, in Schenectady at Rivers Casino & Resort, and in Waterloo at del Lago Resort and Casino. Of course, there is a compelling and long-running alternative if you wish to wager from home (or anywhere else in the state): legal offshore sports betting sites. Indeed, there are plenty of legal online sports betting websites available for NY residents, and these will allow you to bet safely. When it comes down to it, you will be able to play the odds without fear of arrest, as players have not been banned from joining in on the fun through these legal online sports betting websites.

Residents of New York enjoy many different ways of gaining access to various types of gambling, between existing tribal gaming venues, online casino gaming sites, and online sportsbooks that allow bets from New York players. Residents of this state can safely place all the online bets they want at legal online casinos and offshore online sportsbooks that accept New York residents. It is naturally more convenient to play your favorite gambling games and to place sports bets at online casinos and sportsbooks because this doesn’t require leaving your house or even putting on pants, which is always a plus. That’s why New York gamblers enjoy using legal sports betting sites.

As far as the specific legalities of offshore sports betting for NY residents, you can check out section 225.00 et seq. of the New York Penal Code for more information. Note that the NY gambling laws include zero mention of the words “Internet,” “online,” or “sports.”

Will I Go to Jail for Online Sports Betting in New York?

In the Empire State, no laws exist in the state penal code that would make online gambling explicitly illegal. That is why not one single arrest has ever taken place in New York for any crimes related to online sports gambling or casino play. New York residents shouldn’t fear federal prosecution either, since the Department of Justice officially altered their reading of the 1961 Federal Wire Act to make it clear that the law only applies to providers of illegal sports betting action (i.e. bookies), and not to online gamblers themselves.

Ny Legal Sports Betting

Another important law that New York bettors should know is the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). This law was passed in 1992, and it banned most US states from offering sports betting of any kind. However, online wagers made on sports were not characterized under this law, and PASPA was already a bit obsolete by the time the Supreme Court overturned the law as unconstitutional in 2018. Sports bettors are safe to place their wagers online in New York, and NY is slated to have in-state sports betting in the near future, as well.

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The state of New York has not addressed the use of the Internet for gambling, so there simply aren’t any sports betting laws in New York that address Internet sports gambling. Of course, there is finally a limited selection of licensed and regulated local bookies in New York that you are able to wager with. With PASPA gone, the state is also currently considering half a dozen or more bills that would set the governmental terms for a legalized Internet and/or statewide sports betting industry, though it could take several years for sports wagering to extend past the four casino venues where it is currently available.

But even once that happens, you will almost certainly get better odds and lines using an offshore sportsbook, as local New York books will have to weigh many of their contests due to the “home team” bettors they’ll have to balance their books against. Internationally-based offshore sportsbooks do not have this same problem with homers weighing certain lines on certain games, as they accept players from all over the United States.

How Federal Laws Impact New York Sports Betting

There are two different federal laws that impact legal New York sports betting: the Interstate Wire Act (1961) and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA, 2006). PASPA was the most suffocating and restrictive of the American sports betting laws from a state perspective, but even though it’s no longer in play, the remaining two federal laws are still important to understand.

The Wire Act’s purpose was to prevent bookmakers from accepting interstate wagers placed using telegraphic or telephonic means. This extends to the Internet, but it does not apply to offshore sportsbooks, as these books operate outside of US jurisdiction. The Wire Act also does not criminalize those who place wagers, instead going after only those who place them. Offshore sports betting renders the Wire Act moot.

Similarly, the UIGEA doesn’t go after New York sports bettors themselves. However, the law actually does affect New York players because it puts banking restrictions on all gambling sites. The UIGEA doesn’t allow banks to knowingly accept gambling transactions, but the top sites have figured their ways around this as well. Neither of the remaining federal antigambling laws have anything to do with individual players, but it is important to understand these laws for your own peace of mind.

How Old Do You Have To Be To Bet Online In New York?

The legal gambling age for players living in or visiting New York is 21 years old. This means that despite a betting site only requiring NY residents to be at least 18 to sign up, players in New York should still wait until they are 21 before joining. While nobody has ever been arrested or fined for wagering underage at offshore sportsbooks, it’s always a good idea to “comply” with your state’s laws. It shows good faith on your part, and it is simply an added measure of security when wagering on sports online.

Mobile sports betting has become incredibly popular among New York sports betting fans. All of the top online sportsbooks are offshore sites that are legally regulated and licensed outside of the United States, making them totally safe to use for New York residents. All of these top sites offer mobile sports betting in New York so players can enjoy gambling on sports from their smartphone or tablet devices whenever they want. While none of these sites actually has an official iPhone or Android app available in the App Store or in Google Play, the mobile versions of their sites are optimized for the small screen and offer fluid, gesture-based interaction for quick searching and wagering.

Both tribal casinos and four upstate casinos can offer sports betting in New York. However, there is no concrete timetable on when that will be expanded to include online or mobile betting. It seems like a good bet that NY legislators will want to eventually expand sports wagering, but the timeline is still unknown.

As such, it will be some time before NY actually gets its state-sanctioned, online sports betting system up and running, and in the meantime, you should continue using legal offshore New York betting sites. In fact, even when you legally wager locally in the Big Apple, you should still maintain your offshore sports betting memberships, as this allows you to shop lines and maximize your potential payouts.

Is Bovada Legal For New York Residents?

Fortunately, Bovada resumed accepting all wagers from existing New York account holders and also opened registration to all those living in the Empire State. New Jersey residents remain excluded from using Bovada, as do residents of Maryland, Delaware, and Nevada.

Are There Any Brick and Mortar Sportsbooks in New York?

Yes! There are two brick-and-mortar sportsbooks in New York currently open for business. These include:

  • Tioga Downs Casino (Nichols)
  • Rivers Casino & Resort (Schenectady)

How Can I Tell if an Online Sports Betting Site Accepts Wagers from New York citizens?

Most sportsbook websites that accepts American bettors will take wagers from people living in New York. If you are not geographically eligible to join a sportsbook, the book in question will advertise this fact clearly and will not let you complete the sign-up process.

Betting On Professional and Collegiate New York Sports Teams

New York is one of the biggest sports markets in the entire country, and is home to some of the most storied professional sports teams of all time. The New York Yankees have nearly 30 championships in the MLB, while the Mets have added a couple more. The NFL has three different teams that call New York home, with the Giants being most successful. Of course, the local fandom for the Jets and the Bills is through the roof as well, even though they’ve had less postseason success historically. The NHL’s Islanders and Rangers have combined for several Stanley Cup trophies, while the Knicks of the NBA have a few championships under their belt, as well. And of course, there is a hefty NCAA presence in the Empire State, with over a dozen DI teams showing up on the betting boards each gameday.

New York Sports Wagering

  • NFL: Giants, Jets & Bills
  • MLB: Yankees & Mets
  • NBA: Knicks & Nets
  • NHL: Islanders, Rangers & Sabers
  • MLS: New York City FC & Red Bulls
  • NCAA: Syracuse Orange, Army Black Knights, Columbia Lions & Cornell Big Red