You can now use your phone to bet on sports if you live in New York. CNBC reports the state has legalized mobile sports betting as of January 8th. Multiple companies are already taking bets as of 9AM Eastern, including DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars Sportsbook and Rush Street Interactive. Five other companies (including BetMGM and WynnBet) have licenses, but haven’t yet cleared the legal requirements.
The move came after former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo changed his mind on online sports betting. He saw it as an opportunity to keep more tax revenue and make the state the largest betting market in the US. New Jersey currently dominates American online gambling, with research firm Eilers & Krejcik noting that roughly a fifth of all revenue comes from the state.
Any success might take a while, however. New York’s 51 percent tax rate on gambling revenue is much steeper than New Jersey’s 13 percent, and that could prevent the Empire State from claiming the lead for years. Still, this may be an important turning point— New York is clearly large and influential, and the outcome of its efforts could influence stances on mobile betting in states where the practice remains illegal.
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