A total of 36 states have legalized sports gambling since 2018 and another three could get in the game this year. Here’s where the action is across America.
Game On: American bet more than $100 billion legally on sports in 2022. Read also : Everything you need to know about the new Massachusetts sports betting law.
Baseball’s all-time hits leader Pete Rose has a new side: legal sports betting. On New Year’s Day, the Cincinnati Reds legend, who was permanently banned from baseball in 1989 for betting on the game while he was the team’s manager, placed Ohio’s first legal sports bet.
True to form, Rose put the Reds in action to win the 2023 World Series.
Thirty-four years after Rose was kicked out of MLB, sports betting is now legal in 36 states and Washington, D.C., up from 32 in 2021. (To date, 33 states are operational, while another three have not launched their programs yet). Mobile sports betting is now legal in 26 states, up from January 18, 2022.
And legalized gambling is paying off in states that allow it. In the first ten months of 2022, Americans legally bet $73 billion on sports, up 70% year-over-year, according to the American Gaming Association. Sports betting companies generated $5.77 billion from those bets, up 78% from the previous year, and states and the federal government generated approximately $1.3 billion.
New York, which launched its mobile sports betting market last year, is number one in sports betting revenue with $1.07 billion between January and October. Illinois is a distant second with $616 million during the same period, and New Jersey is in third place with $595 million.
Casey Clark, senior vice president of the American Gaming Association (AGA), says total gaming revenue (slots, table games, and sports betting) at tribal and commercial casinos for the full year of 2022 is likely to exceed $100 billion. The total account would surpass the revenue record of $92 million ($53 million from commercial casinos and $39 billion from tribal casinos) set in 2021.
“Last year was an unprecedented year for the gaming industry,” says Clark. “And certainly the continued expansion and adoption and maturation of legal sports betting across the country contributed to that.”
The legalization of sports betting has spread throughout the country since 2018, when the Supreme Court annulled the Law for the Protection of Professional and Amateur Sports. PASPA had made sports betting illegal, except in Nevada and a few other states. After the ban was lifted, states were allowed to legalize sports betting and launch their own programs. The industry has been on fire and growing rapidly. The market has grown from seven states in 2018 to 36 (plus Washington, D.C.) in the past four years.
Clark predicts that 2023 will be another record breaking year as existing state markets mature and new ones launch. “We will see [legislative] action in probably nine or 10 states,” he says.
But don’t expect many to legalize this year. The political process takes time as bills are introduced and various legislators oppose them. “Each of these markets takes a properly measured approach,” he says. The largest states that still do not allow sports betting are California, Florida, and Texas.
Florida legalized sports betting in 2021 through a gambling pact with the state’s Seminole tribe, a deal that was slated to bring $2.5 billion in tax revenue to Florida over five years. But a federal judge struck down the deal, ruling that the plan violated the state constitution and India’s federal gambling law. The tribe is appealing the ruling and the state’s mobile sports betting market is currently in limbo.
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The Texas legislature, which only meets every two years, will meet later this year and has more support among lawmakers than in years past. An “army” of 300 lobbyists is trying to get politicians to say yes to the game. Texas State Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, introduced a bill that would regulate casino gaming and sports betting in a limited number of cities, including Austin, Dallas and Houston. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, while campaigning against Beto O’Rourke in October, said he was “open” to hearing proposals.
And in California, voters rejected two competing ballot measures in November. But the fight to legalize sports betting in America’s most populous state is surely not over.
While a lot needs to happen politically before the Big Three legalize sports betting, four more states will most likely change their laws this year. This is where the sports betting map could expand in 2023.
Kentucky
In early January, lawmakers introduced a bill that, if passed, would legalize sports betting (in-person and mobile). During his State of the Commonwealth address, Governor Andy Beshear said the state will vote on sports betting legislation. (Kentucky could also legalize medical marijuana this year.)
Minnesota
A bill that would give control of a legal sports betting market in Minnesota to Native American tribes failed to pass the Senate last year. But Rep. Zack Stephenson, who sponsored the bill, told the Legal Sports Report website that a similar bill will soon be introduced. “There will be some minor changes, nothing public at the moment,” Stephenson said. “As for the movement, I anticipate that the initial language will be introduced within about two weeks.”
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Missouri
The legalization of sports betting is a top priority this year for Missouri lawmakers. The state is almost entirely surrounded by states that have legal sports betting markets, including Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, and Kansas. To see also : Incredible Sports Moment Goes Viral During LLWS Regional Final (Video). State House Majority Leader Jonathan Patterson told the Missouri Independent that getting the legislation passed is important to the state.
“I would rank it pretty high for the fact that our citizens obviously want it,” Patterson said. “There is also a revenue component. That money can be used for education. I think the importance is high and it provides significant income.”
North Carolina
It is currently legal to bet on sports in tribal casinos in North Carolina. A bill to expand the state’s program to include mobile sports betting did not become law in 2022 after being defeated by the House. Lawmakers are expected to try again to legalize gambling this year.
The professional leagues were adamant that betting was bad for their games and built their arguments around integrity. And that’s how we ended up with PASPA, which served as a federal law banning sports betting, even though most states already banned it.
Is online gambling legal in the EU?
In which countries is it legal to gamble online? Online gambling is legal in Japan, the Philippines, and Kazakhstan. Some countries like China, Thailand, Singapore, Macao partially allow gambling. In India, online gambling is strictly prohibited, except in two states, Sikkim and Goa. However, some states in India have legalized alternative scratch card lotteries.
Is it legal to gamble in Europe?
Gambling is legal throughout Europe. There are different laws in each country, but there is no country that prohibits gambling the way the US does in most states. Are there really people who, even if they are gambling and the bank really “always” wins, are capable of making a permanent living from gambling online?
Where is online gambling legal in Europe?
The countries of Europe are some of the most liberal on this list with regard to online gambling. Some of the most popular ones that allow it are France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy, Hungary, Norway, Denmark, Russia, Romania, Moldova, Portugal, Malta, Gibraltar and many more.
Is online gambling legal in all 50 states?
States That Don’t Allow Online Gambling Gambling is legal in one form or another in 48 states across the country. The two strongholds that completely ban it are Utah and Hawaii.
In which states can you gamble online? Where can you legally bet on sports?
- Arizona. Online and mobile sports betting is legal in Arizona. …
- Colorado. Retail, mobile, and online sports betting is legal in Colorado. …
- Connecticut. Retail, mobile, and online sports betting is legal in Connecticut. …
- Illinois. …
- Indiana. …
- Iowa…
- Kansas. …
- Louisiana.
What states allow online gambling 2022?
As a general rule, going virtual is off limits, unless states enact laws. This is the case in states like West Virginia, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, which have express legal terms for online casino gaming. In the rest of the states, gambling is only allowed in land-based casinos.
How many states have online casinos?
Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia all allow online casinos. Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania along with Nevada also allow online poker games. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia also provide residents with the option of online sports betting.
Is gambling legal in all 50 states?
If state lotteries are included, then 48 states allow some form of gambling (the exceptions are Hawaii, where gambling was prohibited prior to statehood, and Utah, which has a majority Latter-day Saint population and also prohibits the game in the state constitution).
What states is online betting legal?
How many states have legal online casinos? Online gambling is legal in six US states: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
Can I legally gamble online in the US? Legal online casinos are currently available in New Jersey, Delaware, Michigan, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. If you are not in those states, you can play at sweepstakes casinos where you can play casino games for cash prizes.
What states allow online gambling 2022?
As a general rule, going virtual is off limits, unless states enact laws. This is the case in states like West Virginia, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, which have express legal terms for online casino gaming. In the rest of the states, gambling is only allowed in land-based casinos.
