Sports betting is growing in the state of New York and you can find a number of sports betting picks right here. If you are looking to bet on the Empire State teams like the Mets, Yankees, Jets, or Nets, odds are posted for their chances to win it all. Betting picks include the top analysis to back it up and are posted early in the day for you to get a leg up on the best odds. Sports betting can be an all-year thing, going from the dog days of summer with baseball to football and basketball dominating in the winter.
Sports Betting in New York – What’s Legal and What’s Not, Yet
Depending on whom you talk to, New York is the future gold mine for sports betting. New York City itself is clearly one of the biggest sports venues in the world. Home to multiple teams in multiple sports, it’s a target for sports betting operators.
But, to date, the wave of physical sportsbooks has been isolated to casinos in the Upstate. The New York State Gaming Commission has accepted and approved no less than a dozen applications to take physical bets.
Currently, these are isolated to venues in Upstate New York, but there is little doubt that operations will spread gradually. New York City is simply too large a market to ignore for long. Another factor in the growth of physical sportsbooks across New York is a legal ruling that anything a commercial casino can do; an Indian-based operation must be permitted to do as well.
This means that any full-service casino with ties to the Oneidas, Senecas or Mohawk casino operations will legally be able to establish a physical sportsbook. However, online betting in New York is still not legal, and the delay has a few people searching for any viable answer explaining why.
Sports Betting in New York
Earlier this month, Rivers Sportsbook in Schenectady accepted the first legal sports bet in the state of New York. Rivers set the table for as many as eight venues in Upstate New York primed to begin taking bets over the next couple of weeks.
Another pair of sports betting lounges is scheduled to launch their operations on the first day of August. Stick’s Sports Bar and Sportsbook located in the Akwensasne Mohawk Casino also has targeted late-summer to early-fall for accepting their first bets.
In light of the bitter battle the state had with daily fantasy sports operators, it may come as a surprise that another sportsbook will open Friday at Tioga Downs Casino Resort. FanDuel Sportsbook will accept a ceremonial first bet from a New York state assemblywoman that afternoon.
New York Sports Betting to Go Mobile, Eventually
There are still a number of restrictions in place that are going to temporarily limit online betting. The proof from adjacent neighboring states, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, should be enough to spur legislators to act soon.
While there was nothing passed to officially allow online mobile operations, it seems a foregone conclusion it will eventually be approved. One odd roadblock currently be navigated is the opposition from the New York governor.
Legislators have books worth of statistics on their side. In New Jersey alone, data show that close to 80-percent of the bets made came across mobile devices. No one really understands why Governor Andrew Cuomo is against mobile sports betting.
It would seem inevitable that eventually a public referendum would be enough to supersede his resistance. For the time being, it must be considered a victory for the sports betting industry that at least New York is on board with taking wagers in person.
New York Horse Racing
Like a number of states, horse racing was one of the early forms betting entertainment. The earliest reported track in Goshen was used for harness racing. John Hunter and William Travers built a track in Saratoga.
The Saratoga track is the longest running thoroughbred horse track in North America. Named for one of the co-founders, the Travers Stakes is the oldest stakes format as well. Besides Saratoga, New York is also home of the Belmont Stakes in New York City.
The Aqueduct and Vernon Downs are two other popular New York horse racing tracks. The largest percentage of horse racing facilities also offer limited casino games. Considering a longstanding history with the New York Gaming Commission, horse tracks are prime locations targeted by physical sportsbooks.
Daily fantasy Sports in New York
New York was a battlefield for the two biggest players in the daily fantasy sports (DFS) industry. Both FanDuel and DraftKings struggled with certain aspects of New York law that some said made DFS games illegal as games of chance.
What has happened is that a detailed inspection of the New York State Constitution not only revealed DFS to be within the legal framework of New York law, but it also gave indication to many that mobile sports betting would be legal as well.
Oddly enough, both FanDuel and DraftKings may be two of the biggest players to benefit from recent legal determinations. Following along in some respects to the wording used for horse racing bets made by telephone, lawmakers proposing online sports betting think they have the inside angle to overcome any resistance from the governor’s mansion.
So, you can pick up your telephone anywhere in New York and lay down a wager on the four-horse in the sixth race. However, under current rules, you can’t take the Jets and the points on a Sunday afternoon in the NFL.
The legal experts have weighed in as well, and they are equally perplexed. Something has New York governor opposed to online betting operations. Maybe it’s the loss his state took against two of the primary players in online sports betting, DraftKings and FanDuel.
Whatever the former New York Attorney General and New York City born Cuomo’s reasoning is, he appears to be in the fourth quarter of another losing battle. It seems it some circles he is cutting off his nose to spite his face.
In the end, legislators have the bean-counters on their side, and the amount of revenue that will be absorbed from online sports betting’s addition to the equation is just too much to ignore. Eventually, mobile sports bettors will win, the State of New York will win, and Andrew Cuomo will lose, well sort of.
Types of Legal Betting in New York
Daily Fantasy Sports
Daily Fantasy Sports officially became legal in New York on August 3, 2016. Temporary permits were given to major sites like FanDuel and DraftKings later that month. Two years later in 2018, a ruling by a New York judge put the future of DFS into question in the state. The ruling is currently under appeal.
Sports Betting
Sports betting was legalized in 2013 as part of a gambling expansion in New York. Once the PASPA ruling by the Supreme Court in May 2018, sports betting effectively became legal at the states four commercial casinos. As part of their pacts with the state, tribal casinos are authorized to offer any form of gambling that New York’s commercial casinos offer. Mobile sports betting failed to pass in the most recent legislative session.
Casino
New York has a number of Native American casinos on Seneca, Mohawk, and Oneida tribal lands. The first Indian casino opened in 1993. Four commercial casinos opened in upstate New York between 2016 and 2018. Up to three casinos can still be built as part of the 2013 gambling expansion, with one expected to be built in New York City in 2022.
Lottery
The New York Lottery began in 1967 and was the second state to offer a lottery behind New Hampshire in 1964. The New York lottery participates in multi-state drawings such as the POWERBALL and MEGA Millions. There is currently no online lottery gaming offered in New York.
Horse Racing
Horse racing is very prominent in New York with over a dozen racetracks. Online wagering on horse racing is legal due to a safe harbor clause for horse racing in the federal UIGEA legislation. All of the state’s off-track betting facilities offer online horse race betting.
Poker
Poker is legal in casinos in New York. However, online poker is not. A number of major poker tournaments are held in New York each year, including the Heartland Poker Tour. New York residents can find 24/7 poker rooms throughout the state at its many tribal casinos.
New York Sports Betting Timeline
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2009: Senator Eric Adams introduced the first sports betting bill in New York. The bill, S 6061, attempted to allow horse tracks and off-track betting facilities to offer legal sports betting. The bill stalled and never made it out of committee.
2011: Adams once again introduced a sports betting bill, a copy of his 2009 bill. The bill, S 3708, was supported by another bill in the lower chamber. Assemblyman David Weprin introduced A 10464, which was similar to Adams’ bill, but included collegiate sports betting as well. Weprin’s bill also included language that stated “any constitutionally authorized casino facility” to the list of possible licensees. Senator Tony Avella introduced a matching bill in the Senate, S 7401. None of the bills advanced.
2013: Voters in New York passed an amendment with 57 percent of the voters approving a gambling expansion in the state. Under the referendum, new casino properties would be built in the upstate region to help stimulate the economy. These casinos would be permitted to offer a number of gambling options, including sports betting if the federal ban were to ever be lifted. Adams reintroduced another sports betting bill, S 2411, which was identical to the two bills he sponsored in previous years. Others bill were introduced as well, but once again, none of them made it out of committee.
2015: Weprin and Avella reintroduced their bills from the previous session. A 3080 and S 940 were refiled in January as a way to expand sports betting to horse tracks and off-track betting facilities. The bills were returned to their respective Judiciary Committees and stalled again.
2017: Assemblyman Gary Pretlow, chairman of the Assembly’s Racing and Wagering Committee, indicated that he intended to finally back sports betting legislation after previous resistance. Weprin and Avella again introduced sports betting bills, A 5438 and S 1282, that would include horse tracks, commercial casinos, and off-track betting facilities.
2018:A public hearing was held by the Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee on sports betting. The NBA surprisingly announced that they would no longer oppose the state’s attempts to legalize sports betting, assuming the state would meet some conditions, one of which being the “integrity fee”. Sports betting bills popped up in the Assembly and Senate once again, although neither advanced. Senator John Bonacic and Assemblyman Pretlow introduced bills that would have included mobile and online sports betting. They also included the NBA’s integrity fee to the professional sports leagues.
2019: Senator Joseph Addabbo is the new chairman of the Senate Racing, Wagering and Gaming Committee, replacing Bonacic. He introduced a bill, S 17, similar to Bonacic’s bill, that included an integrity fee of 0.2 percent. The bill would have allowed for mobile sports betting as well, but failed to pass in the most recent legislative session. Addabbo and Pretlow have stated that they will continue their efforts to bring online sports betting to New York.
The New York State Gaming Commission approved preliminary rules and regulations which allowed New York to begin licensing procedures. The first sportsbooks in the state are expected to open in September.