Legalized online sports betting made its biggest conquest yet when New York State went live on Saturday, just in time for the final week of the NFL’s regular season.
The New York Gaming Commission has given approval for online bookmakers DraftKings, Caesars, FanDuel and Rush Street Interactive to start accepting bets. The move also comes just in time for Monday’s CFP National Championship game between Alabama and Georgia, as well as the upcoming NFL playoffs and Super Bowl.
“Today’s announcement by the New York State Gaming Commission that four of the nine licensed Mobile Sports Wagering Operations have been approved to begin operations … is great news for New York in terms of revenue, new funding for education, addiction programs and youth sports, as well as new jobs,” said state Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Queens), the chairman of the Senate Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering. “I look forward to the other five operators satisfying the statutory and regulatory requirements necessary to launch in the near future.”
Bally’s, BetMGM, Genting’s Resorts World, PointsBet and Wynn Resorts have also requested approval.
New York becomes the largest state to approve online sports betting and one of 18 states where it is legal to place sports bets remotely through online sportsbooks. The country’s three most populous states — California, Florida and Texas — still have not approved online wagering. New York previously allowed on-site sports wagering at casinos in 2019.
As part of the stipulations for approving online sports wagering, the four approved bookmakers must align themselves with a land-based casino and pay a $5 million annual hosting fee. There also will be a 51% tax on the four bookmakers for each of the next 10 years.
PlayNY.com projects that despite its unique structure among U.S. legal markets with a national-high tax rate, New York will grow into one of the largest markets in the country.
“New York will be a fascinating test case for just how much states can tax sports betting without damaging the future of the industry,” PlayUSA.com Network Lead Analyst Dustin Gouker said. “Launching with four of the best-known sportsbook brands in the U.S. shows that operators have not been dissuaded so far. And there is no doubt New Yorkers will respond in huge numbers, so long as operators can offer competitive products that sufficiently desensitize crossing state lines to place a bet.”
–Field Level Media with Bill Parry
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