LEGAL US ONLINE GAMBLING GUIDE

Online casinos in the US

New Jersey online casino

New Jersey currently stands tall as the leader in the online gambling USA space.

New Jersey passed its online gambling law in 2013. This allowed Atlantic City casinos to apply for internet gaming permits and host a variety of online poker and online casino sites under those licenses.

There are now more online casinos in New Jersey than in any other state in the union. Almost every major casino operator owns a New Jersey-based online casino site.

Sites

Each online casino site must run through a land-based casino licensee. Here is the list of every New Jersey online casino:

Since the first site launched, online gaming revenues have steadily trended upward. The new market’s annual revenue breached the $130 million mark in its first full year of service, and reached revenues of $196.7 million in 2016.

The past two years, the industry has gained $50 million in revenue each year. Internet casinos in New Jersey nearly surpassed $300 million in 2018. Overall, online casinos have earned roughly $925 million in their five years of existence.

Online casino games available in New Jersey

Each online casino comes with hundreds of slot game options. In addition, there are several common table games available, including Video Poker, Blackjack, Pai-Gow Poker, Hi-Lo Solitaire, Baccarat, Keno, Fortune Teller Keno, Roulette, Casino hold’em, Three-card Poker, Let It Ride, Craps, 3 Wheel Roulette, Poker Bet, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em.

Several online casinos also feature live dealer games. These games allow players to interact directly with flesh-and-blood dealers in Atlantic City gaming studios. They can provide a far more immersive experience than typical online games.

Pennsylvania online casino

Pennsylvania legalized online casinos in 2017. There are no online casinos active in Pennsylvania right now, however, the current official launch date is July 2019.

By virtue of the law, 13 casino operators with operations or planned operations in Pennsylvania had the ability to apply for licenses to offer online slots, online table games, and online poker. Each license cost $4 million, although the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) offered a one-time package deal for $10 million initially.

Nine of the operators ponied up for the package deal, although one casino ultimately rescinded its offer. Two more applied after the deadline, bringing the total number of operators with online casino licenses to 10. They are:

*Mohegan Sun Pocono paid for all three licenses after package offer expired and spent $2 million extra. However, it later rescinded its application for online poker and received a $4 million refund.

**Presque Isle Downs only applied for online slots and table games licenses

***Live! Philadelphia Casino (also known as Stadium Casino) has no physical location – plans to build the south Philadelphia casino property have been delayed until 2020 because of new ownership.

That meant that the online casino licenses for Rivers Casino, Meadows Casino, and Lady Luck Casino at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort lay unused. As a result, the PGCB allowed outside operators to submit applications for certification as qualified gaming entities (QGE).

These QGEs would then be able to petition for the vacant licenses. Two companies, MGM and Golden Nugget, received their certification in January 2019. They both intend on establishing a presence with an online casino in Pennsylvania.

Delaware online casino

Delaware became the first state to legalize online gambling in 2012. The market opened up in November 2013 with sites operated through the state’s three racinos. So, gamblers can find online casinos at the sites for:

• Delaware Park
• Dover Downs
• Harrington Raceway

These sites offer a variety of blackjack, roulette, slots and video poker games.

Much like the state itself, the Delaware market is relatively small. In 2018, the three online casinos combined to earn roughly $2.6 million in revenues.

Of the three, Delaware Park is the busiest site. It consistently outperforms the other two casinos in terms of handle, and almost always retains a higher amount of revenue.

Nevada online casino

One might think that the land-based casino capital of the US would be the online casino leader. However, the Silver State has only a limited presence in the online sphere.

In fact, the sum total of online gambling in Nevada boils down to a single online poker site. At this point, only WSOP NV is active in the state.

However, if there’s only room for one site, WSOP is a pretty good one to have. WSOP pools its players with those from New Jersey and Delaware to create a solid pool of opponents. Players can win actual WSOP bracelets from tournaments directly on the site, as well as entries into the live events.

West Virginia online casino

West Virginia became the fifth state to legalize online casinos in March 2019. The West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act authorized the state’s five casinos to pursue the development of casino and poker apps.

So, potentially, there could be five online casinos and/or poker rooms in West Virginia soon. The five casinos are:

• The Casino Club at Greenbrier Resort
• Hollywood Casino Charles Town
• Mardi Gras Casino
• The Mountaineer Hotel, Casino, and Resort
• Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack

There is no specific timeframe for any of these properties to launch their sites. Regulations for online gambling are not expected before 2020, so a launch could not happen before then.

Legal online sports betting in the US

The legal situation surrounding sports betting in the US underwent a radical change in 2018. The US Supreme Court ruled in May 2018 that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) was unconstitutional.

Due to the decision, any state could potentially offer sports betting to its inhabitants. So far, eight states are either actively allowing sports betting or have legalized it and are hammering out the final details.

As far as the online sports betting component goes, five of those eight states are either offering it currently or making plans to offer it. They are:

• New Jersey
• Pennsylvania
• West Virginia
• Nevada
• Mississippi

NJ sports betting apps

New Jersey is the most prominent state to offer sports betting right now. The Garden State spearheaded the downfall of PASPA and contributed the most time and effort to argue in front of the Supreme Court.

Currently, there are 10 land-based sportsbooks and 13 online sportsbook betting apps up and running in the state. The online sportsbooks are listed below:

Online and mobile betting apps

In January 2019, New Jersey accepted over $304 million in wagers. That figure translated into over $15 million in revenue for the various locations around the state.

The inaugural year for sports betting in New Jersey, 2018, yielded bettors who placed over $1.2 billion in wagers. From that figure, the industry itself held just over $94 million in revenue for the year.

Online sports betting has eclipsed retail wagering in New Jersey by an almost 3:1 ratio. The limited accessibility of the state’s gaming areas makes betting through a device a much more palatable option for most residents and visitors.

PA sports betting apps

After some months of delays, Pennsylvania finally launched sports betting in November 2018. Eight retail sportsbook locations have opened in the state.

However, the big question in the Keystone State is about the imminent launch of online sportsbooks and mobile sports betting apps. We finally have an answer: May 2019.

The PGCB confirmed that the first launches will occur soon. Which sportsbook will launch first is still a mystery, but one of the following Pennsylvania casinos is the best bet:

All seven of these casinos have their approvals from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board in hand. However, the operators are delaying any kind of movement toward launch until they have better information about the Department of Justice opinion about the Wire Act.

As for retail locations, there are now eight sportsbooks active in PA. They are:

• Harrah’s Philadelphia
• Hollywood Casino
• Parx Casino
• SugarHouse Casino
• Rivers Casino
• South Philadelphia Turf Club*
• Valley Forge Casino
• Valley Forge Turf Club*

*Off-track betting locations that now offer wagering on sports. Both locations are owned and operated by Greenwood Gaming, owner of Parx Casino.

WV sports betting apps

West Virginia began to offer sports betting on Aug. 30, 2018. Hollywood Casino Charles Town soft-launched its sportsbook and officially opened two days later.

Since then, the other four casinos in the state have each opened their own sports betting locations. However, the most notable aspect of West Virginia’s entry into the market is its foray into the online space.

BetLucky

Along with New Jersey, West Virginia was the only state home to a fully-functioning online sportsbook. Delaware North, the parent company of Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack and Mardi Gras Casino, launched BetLucky in December 2018.

Unfortunately, due to a dispute with strategic partner Miomni, Delaware North has indefinitely suspended operations at BetLucky as of March 2019. It is unlikely that operations on the app will return.

DraftKings Sportsbook

DraftKings is working to bring its popular sportsbook app to West Virginia in the very near future.

DraftKings reached a partnership deal with Hollywood Casino Charles Town back in December 2018. Now, the daily fantasy sports provider is in the process of securing licensure from the West Virginia Lottery.

According to Legal Sports Report, the West Virginia version of the app will retain all the functionality that DraftKings’ New Jersey version possesses. So, bettors in the Mountain State will soon be able to use the customized betting carousel and revolutionary live ticket system to step up their games.

Retail sportsbooks in West Virginia

Otherwise, Mountain State bettors can head to one of the in-state casinos to place a sports bet. They are:

• Hollywood Casino Charles Town
• FanDuel Sportsbook at Greenbrier Resort
• Mountaineer Hotel, Casino & Resort
• Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack (retail sportsbook operations currently suspended)
• Mardi Gras Casino (retail sportsbook operations currently suspended)

Nevada sports betting apps

Nevada is the birthplace of legal sports betting in the United States. Beginning in 1949, the Silver State began accepting wagers on sports events, live horseraces and off-track horseracing bets.

During the years of PASPA’s implementation, Nevada enjoyed a virtual monopoly on sports betting. For now, Nevada’s sportsbooks remain the industry standard in the country.

One oddity of the sports betting industry in Nevada is its stance on online sports betting. Casinos are allowed to create mobile applications, but there are no standalone sports betting websites.

There are several options available for Nevada mobile sports bettors:

Virtually every Nevada casino offers a sportsbook. Here are some of the more prominent operators in the state:

• Westgate
• Station Casinos – 7 casinos
• CG Technology – 8 casinos
• Caesars – 13 casinos
• MGM Resorts International – 10 casinos
• William Hill
• Boyd Gaming – 9 casinos

Mississippi sports betting apps

Mississippi became the fourth state to offer sports betting on Aug. 1, 2018. Odd as it may seem, Mississippi is the third-largest gambling market in the country.

Unfortunately, Mississippi does not have a provision in its gaming laws to allow online wagering at this time. However, the law does permit mobile wagering on-site.

As it happens, Pearl River Resort appears to be moving down that path for its clients. The resort, which is a unique property that features three onsite casinos amid several acres, is working to provide an onsite betting app.

According to reports, resort management wants the app in order to allow customers to avoid some of the long lines that have appeared at the physical sportsbook. The app will also allow the sportsbook to offer a wider variety of betting styles, including more granular in-play bets.

On the retail side of things, there are 23 sportsbooks in the state. Some locations include:

• Beau Rivage (Biloxi)
• Gold Strike (Tunica)
• Sam’s Town (Tunica)
• IP Casino (Biloxi)
• Hollywood Gulf Coast (Biloxi)
• Resorts Casino (Tunica)

Rhode Island Sports Betting Apps

Rhode Island appears to be barreling toward online sports betting sometime soon. Gov. Gina Raimondo signed S 37 into law, which added a mobile component to the existing sports betting offering in the state.

There are two casinos active in Rhode Island. They are:

• Twin River Lincoln
• Twin River Tiverton

Both casinos are owned by Twin River Worldwide Holdings. So, it is unclear if there will be more than one online sports betting app in Rhode Island. However, some sort of offering should be in the works quite soon.

Online Poker

MULTISTATE POKER

You can play online poker with players in other states, with New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware all allowing some poker sites to offer games in all three jurisdictions. New Jersey was the most recent addition to multistate poker pooling starting in 2018.

Read on for more about online poker in each state.

NEW JERSEY

New Jersey authorized online gaming licensees to launch online poker and online casinos when the market opened up in 2013.

Online poker sites currently operating in the market include:

• WSOP.com NJ
• 888
• PokerStars NJ
• PartyPoker
• Pala Poker
• Borgata Poker

WSOP.com and NJ 888 poker share player pools, and they also serve all three states with legal online poker, sharing player pools across all of them. The most traf

PokerStars NJ was a late entry into the market, launching in the Spring of 2016. However, it has become the market leader. Pala Poker is the latest entry into the New Jersey online poker market, launching in June 2017.

Overall online gambling revenues continue to climb in New Jersey, averaging close to $20 million a month in 2017. However, online poker remains a relatively small percentage of that. In fact, New Jersey online poker revenues seem to average around $2 million per month, representing just 10 percent of the overall online gambling market in the state.

That will change soon though. In the fall of 2017, the state agreed to pool online poker players with both Nevada and Delaware.

NEVADA

Online poker is the only licensed and regulated form of online gambling in the state of Nevada.

Station Casinos’ Ultimate Poker was the first to go live on April 30, 2013. However, WSOP.com Nevada launched in September of that same year and quickly became market leaders. WSOP.com employs 888 Holdings software and heavily cross-promotes its online offering through the World Series of Poker. These efforts include online satellites to WSOP bracelet events and online WSOP bracelet events themselves.

Real Gaming has since launched a competing online poker room affiliated with the South Point Casino. The site only offers No Limit Texas Hold’em cash games and one-table tournaments.

Ultimate Poker shut down in November 2014, leaving just two online poker sites operating in Nevada.

In March 2015, Nevada and Delaware entered into a poker liquidity sharing agreement which is run through WSOP.com in Nevada.

DELAWARE

Delaware’s three horse-track based online gambling sites offer peer-to-peer online poker with software provided by 888 Holdings. Delaware and Nevada began sharing online poker traffic in March 2015. However, the Delaware online poker market remains small, posting one of the lowest player participation rates in the world since its inception.

PENNSYLVANIA

In October of 2017, Pennsylvania passed a massive gambling expansion bill into law. As part of the expansion, the state can now legally offer regulated online poker within the state.

The language of the law also sets up the possibility for the state to easily enter into interstate compacts like the one between Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey.

The state received eight applications from PA casinos to offer comprehensive online gambling in the state, including online poker. The remaining casinos could still apply for a la carte online poker licenses for $4 million each. Mohegan Sun Pocono chose to buy one, while Presque Isle bought other a la carte licenses, but skipped on poker.

The remaining online poker licenses will go to approved gaming entities from outside of Pennsylvania. The application period runs through the end of October. PGCB will likely award those remaining licenses in November.

WEST VIRGINIA

West Virginia legalized online poker in March 2019. By virtue of the West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act, the five casinos in the state will be able to launch online poker apps in the near future.

So, the following properties will potentially have their own sites soon:

• The Casino Club at Greenbrier Resort
• Hollywood Casino Charles Town
• Mardi Gras Casino
• The Mountaineer Hotel, Casino, and Resort
• Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack

The law specifies that officials must write regulations in 2020. So, next year is the earliest time that an online poker site could launch in the state.

Still, there’s no denying that there are now five states with online poker.

US Online Lottery

GEORGIA

The Georgia Lottery Corporation allows residents to play online from anywhere in Georgia. Players can buy tickets for draw games, including Fantasy 5, Mega Millions, Powerball. There are also Keno games available and the Georgia Lottery’s exclusive interactive Diggi Games. These are essentially social games and electronic scratch-off hybrids including crosswords and bingo games.

Online lottery sale went live in the state in November 2012. The launch coincided with the release of a lottery debit card players can use online called the iHOPE. It allows players to preload funds, buy tickets and download winnings.

ILLINOIS

Illinois launched a pilot program offering online sales of Lotto and Mega Millions tickets in March 2012. This made Illinois the first state to offer online lottery ticket sales. By December 2012, the Illinois Lottery’s website was also offering tickets for the popular multi-state Powerball lottery. It has since expanded to include Daily Lottery Games and Instant Games, the online equivalent of instant ticket scratch-offs.

In April 2014, Illinois Lottery officials announced online tickets sales had reached $36.9 million in the program’s first two years.

MICHIGAN

The Michigan Lottery officially launched online lottery sales in the Fall of 2014. Michigan residents were then allowed to buy tickets for Instant Keno and electronic scratch-off game equivalents from a computer, smartphone, or tablet device. In January 2016, the Michigan Lottery began draw game ticket sales online. This allowed Michigan residents to buy tickets online for the most popular draw games, including Powerball, Mega Millions, Lotto 47, and Fantasy 5. Players have to be Michigan residents over the age of 18. Plus, they must sign up for an account on the Michigan Lottery website to make purchases.

Learn more about Michigan online lottery here.

KENTUCKY

Kentucky became the latest state to offer online lottery ticket sales in 2016. The state offers online sales of jackpot and daily draw games as well as instant play games. Online ticket sales were actually approved in 2013. However, it took the state three years to develop its complex online ticketing and security system. Players have to set up an account and deposit money to buy tickets. Deposits cannot be withdrawn in accordance with money-laundering laws.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

In June of 2017, New Hampshire became the fifth state to pass laws allowing for online lottery sales.

On Sept. 20, 2018, the state officially launched its online lottery offering.

PENNSYLVANIA

As part of a large gambling expansion bill that passed in October 2017, Pennsylvania is the latest state to legalize the online lottery. The PA iLottery soft-launched on May 29, 2018. Currently, it only features instant win online scratch-off games. There is room for the game selection to expand in the future though.

However, the lottery is currently dealing with a legal issue. Pennsylvania casinos recently filed suit against the PA Lottery because, according to the casinos,  its online instant games bear too strong a resemblance to slot machines.