Is Betting In New York Legal? We’ve Got You Covered
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New York has been a traditionally hesitant state when it comes to gambling expansions. Commercial casinos didn’t make their way to the state until after a 2013 voter referendum. New York sports betting has been a hot topic in the state all year. While it is now legal, the state has neglected to bring mobile sports betting to the state. Something that will surely be a huge blow to the state’s sports betting revenue as residents of New York City will continue to travel to New Jersey as opposed to heading upstate to one of four commercial casinos.
What Type of Betting Are Legal in New York?
Daily Fantasy Sports
In 2016 New York began regulating online fantasy sports as a game of skill. A recent court ruling threatened Daily Fantasy Sports in the state, but they are still legal, for now. DFS giants like FanDuel and DraftKings have permits to operate in New York.
Horse Racing
Horse racing is an American staple when it comes to betting. For a long period of time now, horse racing has withstood any kind of legislative attacks, and it looks like for the near and distant future, this will not change. You can bet on-track while you enjoy a race and come in to place a bet. However, there are off-track options that include online betting. This is one of the few online betting operations available in the entire State of New York.
Physical Sports Betting
Sports betting was legalized back in 2013 at commercial casinos. However, to launch, the state had to wait for the Supreme Court Ruling in 2018 that overturned the federal ban on sports wagering.
2019 was the year that sports betting officially launched at physical locations in Upstate New York. There are several places to bet, including at the popular DraftKings and FanDuel sportsbooks located at del Lago Resort Casino and Tioga Downs, respectively.
The full list of physical sportsbooks are:
- DraftKings Sportsbook at del Lago Resort Casino
- FanDuel Sportsbook at Tioga Downs
- Rivers Sportsbook at Schenectady
- Point Place
- Turning Stone
- Yellow Brick Road Casino
- Resorts World Catskills
- Akwesasne Mohawk Casino
You must be 21 years of age to bet on sports in the State of New York.
Lottery
The New York State Lottery is run both online and in-person! New York State Lottery is for all players 18 years and older and has several different games. The Lotto draws you can expect from New York include the Powerball and Mega Millions, which are the big winners, but the state also offers the New York Lotto that has drawings Wednesdays and Saturdays.
There are also tons of draw games, including WIN4, Cash4Life, Take 5, Quick Draw, and many more in the state. New York does run an online site and application for its lottery that you can use. However, you can get physical tickets at convenience stores and other locations.
What Types of Betting are Illegal in New York?
Online Sports Betting
New York tried to make a late-session push to legalize mobile sports betting but fell short. Governor Andrew Cuomo believes an amendment to the state’s constitution will be required in order to legalize mobile sports betting. This is a big hit to New York by missing out on the opportunity to legalize state-wide mobile sports betting.
Online Casinos
Online real-money casinos are not legal in New York at this time. The state does allow for free-play casinos to operate. New York residents can play a number of commercial and Native American casino free-play games. Most sites offer free virtual credits to players or give them the option to win or purchase virtual credits. Players can’t earn money playing these free casino games.
Online Poker
New York has made a number of attempts to legalize online poker in the past few years, but everything has fallen short. Some bills attempted to classify online poker as a game of skill, therefore making it legal, much like DFS. None of these bills have passed yet but the efforts are continuing in New York. Petitions are available for New York residents to sign online to try and bring legal online poker to the state.
Future of New York Betting
DFS seems to be a bit of a touchy subject in New York. While they are currently classified as a game of skill, there have been attempts to overrule that classification. While they are safe for now, DFS sites may have a rocky road ahead of them. Sports betting is now legal in the state at physical locations, but online hasn’t made its way to New York just yet. Maybe after another year New York can figure out the constitutional amendment argument and will see how much money they are leaving on the table by neglecting to legalize online sports betting.
Online poker and online casinos could be a little further away from coming to New York than online sports betting. There hasn’t seemed to be too much desire to pursue online poker and casinos as there was for online sports betting. Sports betting may make its way online before poker and casinos game do. Once sports betting does, if it does, then New York residents can start to get excited about more online gambling expansions.
How the Coronavirus Pandemic Has Changed New York Betting
The pandemic has been horrible for the entire world; however, one thing that is particularly suffering is the tax revenue for governments all over the world. This includes New York State, which is projected to need to find over $15 billion in revenue over the coming years to make up for the deficit it is facing.
When it comes to finding new revenue streams, New York seems to be opening the doors for tons of different ideas and may even offer fast tracks for things that were projected to take years. One of these things is online betting, and specifically, online sports betting.
In a meeting during Q4 of 2020, Governor Cuomo, who has never endorsed online sports betting, mentioned expanding sports betting as a possible solution. This would be a massive change if New York State can get its executive branch to back online sports betting. This is one avenue in which New York could see online sports betting become legalized in 2021.
New York Betting FAQ
- Are there casinos in New York?
- Is sports betting legal in New York?
- Can I bet with DraftKings Sportsbook in New York?
- Can you bet on sports from your phone in New York?
- Are there any online casinos in New York?
- Does New York have a lottery?
- Is there Daily Fantasy Sports in New York?
- What DFS apps are available in New York?
- What is the legal betting age in New York?
- What states offer mobile betting around New York?
- When will online sports betting launch in New York?
Yes, New York has legal commercial and tribal casinos in its Upstate region. Many of these casinos provide amenities such as hotels, spas, and dining options. However, if you are in New York City, the casinos in New Jersey would be just about the same distance away as the Upstate casinos.
Yes, sports betting was legalized in 2013 for the commercial casinos and tribal casinos in the state. The betting officially launched in 2019, following the lifting of the federal ban on sports betting. There are currently only physical sportsbooks in the state, and you can find these at the Upstate casinos.
You can bet at a DraftKings physical sportsbook at the del Lago casino in Upstate New York. However, you cannot bet online with DraftKings’ online sportsbook in New York State. Currently, there is no online sports betting throughout the entirety of the state, except for on-site betting at the casino.
No, New York State is strictly limited to in-person betting at physical sportsbooks. The hope is that Governor Cuomo changes his mind and supports online sports betting, which will give a big push to the movement to legalize online sports betting in the coming years.
No, online betting is not legal in New York State. Online wagering, including slots, tables, etc., are all illegal in the state currently. There may need to be an amendment to the State Constitution if lawmakers and voters wish to change this. There are some online apps that work in a sweepstakes format that can mimic the casino experience, but you will not find BetMGM Casino, Betfair, or any real online casino in the state.
Yes, the New York Lottery runs online and in-person. You can buy into the New York lotto or the Powerball or Mega Millions lottery as well. New York also has a myriad of smaller games to play. Currently, the online platform for the New York Lottery is a bit barebones and not the easiest to navigate.
Yes, New York had a long process to get daily fantasy sports into the state, and it took loads of legal back and forth. However, you can play daily fantasy sports in New York State and New York City online with your favorite applications.
New York has all the major daily fantasy sports applications. The two largest, FanDuel and Draftkings, have been operational for a while now and offer a full slate of contests to the Empire State. Yahoo Daily Fantasy Sports has also entered the market. If you want to play a prop-based daily fantasy game, then you can also choose Monkey Knife Fight in New York.
To bet in New York, you need to be 21 years of age or older. This goes for all casinos and sportsbooks. If New York legalizes online sports betting or online casinos, then this will also be the legal age. However, for the New York Lottery, the legal age is 18.
If you are in New York, you could easily travel to Rhode Island to bet on DraftKings Sportsbook, online or in person; however, New Jersey is the largest sports betting market in the United States at the moment. Offering physical and online sportsbooks, New Jersey has every single major sportsbook that is in the United States, i.e., FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, William Hill, and more.
There is no definitive date for a sports betting launch in New York. Both 2019 and 2020 saw pushes from lawmakers to get a bill through that would legalize online sports betting. However, there was simply not enough support there. Now that the pandemic has forced the Governor to look at alternative revenue streams, there is a better chance for movement to be made in the 2021 legislative season when it comes to online sports wagering.
