Sports betting is big business in the US as more and more states are getting in on the action. Casinos in several states already offer the option and more are preparing to get started. This week, New York State will be introducing sports betting services via two venues, the Rivers Casino and the Tioga Downs. Both are expecting licensing approvals soon from the Gaming Commission.
Ready to Start
The Rivers Casino of Schenectady and the Tioga Downs venue in the Southern Tier region are expecting to be given their sports betting licensing from the New York Gaming Commission this week. Both are ready to begin offering services having finished up the development of sportsbooks inside their facilities.
Two other venues in upstate New York, the Resorts World Catskills and the del Lago Casino are expected to offer services in the future as well. However, they do not have opening dates set.
Meadowlands Raceway and Tioga Downs owner, Jeff Gural, has stated that he is looking forward to launching services at Tioga Downs. After offering services at the Meadowlands and experiencing positive feedback, he is ready to get started with a new venue.
The property of Tioga Downs will be setting up a soft opening for their sportsbook on Wednesday of this week and officially open by Friday. Gural is confident that the new sportsbook will be a great amenity that they can offer and he looks forward to the ribbon cutting.
The Rivers Casino plans on holding a ribbon cutting for their venue on Tuesday, pending approval from the state. Both venues will be new options for residents and visitors to be able to enjoy sports betting in the state.
Prepping Stages
In May of 2018, the United States Supreme Court decided to strike down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which opened the door for sports betting in individual states. New York was one of the first to have legislation in place to be able to offer services, but quickly lagged behind when compared to others such as New Jersey.
Since the Supreme Court made their decision, lawmakers in New York had been deliberating on how to offer the option within their borders. Preparations for opening finally began after the state’s Gaming Commission gave final approval for regulations of sports betting in June.
This decision was made after new regulations were made via the State Register, which is the necessary steps for the new gaming process.
While New York will offer sports betting, it will be limited when compared to other states, particularly New Jersey. New York will not offer online betting as of yet and they only have four facilities that will offer the gaming option.
New Jersey is much larger in comparison, with several casino and racetracks offering sports betting services along with mobile gaming.
Players in New York are ready for sports betting services to begin and hopefully will not have to wait long to get started.
