Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Online Sports Betting Is Officially Legal In NY. Here's What To Know.
By
Jon Campbell
Published Jan 8, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Hans Pennink/AP/Shutterstock
By
Jon Campbell
Published Jan 8, 2022
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
New Yorkers can now place bets on sporting events from their own home. Or in a bar. Or on the street. Or, well, anywhere in the state.
The state Gaming Commission gave the green light to four mobile betting operators to begin taking wagers Saturday, making New York at least the 18th state to permit online sports gambling in some form.
As of 9 a.m., the mobile betting apps had all been given the all-clear to launch in New York, which joined neighboring states like New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania in allowing mobile sports wagering.
New York state lawmakers and then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo cleared the way for mobile wagering last April, when it was included as part of the state budget. It’s expected to be a money-maker for the state, with New York charging a far higher tax rate than other large states.
Here’s what you need to know about mobile sports wagering in New York:
Why is New York allowing this?
Gambling interests had been actively lobbying New York to permit sports gambling and, eventually, mobile betting ever since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a federal ban in 2018.
New York allowed the state’s private and Native-run casinos to begin taking sports bets in 2019. And in April, Cuomo and lawmakers tucked the mobile-betting provision in the state’s $212 billion spending plan.
The reason why state policymakers were eager to embrace it is simple: Money.
The state is implementing a 51% tax on gross revenues by mobile sports betting operators. That could draw in some significant money for the state: By the time mobile betting is fully implemented, the state Division of Budget estimates it will bring in more than $480 million a year to the state’s coffers.
Where will the money go?
The money from the state tax on mobile betting revenue will, for the most part, be divided up the same way other gambling revenue is.
Under state law, about 80% of that revenue is flagged for two purposes: elementary and secondary education, and property tax relief.
The mobile betting law also flagged money for two other purposes.
For the first year, 1% of the state’s mobile wagering tax revenue will be reserved for treating problem gambling and educating people about gambling addiction. In subsequent years, it will be $6 million a year.
Another 1% in the first year will go toward state grants for sports programs for underserved youths. In subsequent years, $5 million a year will go toward that purpose.
How is this legal?
New York’s state constitution actually has a gambling ban, though you may not know it because of how much, well, gambling happens in the state.
That’s because the ban has a few major exemptions – for the state lottery, for horse racing and, crucially, for up to seven private casinos across the state.
You may notice: Those exemptions do not explicitly allow mobile sports wagering. That’s where lawmakers and then-Governor Cuomo got a bit creative.
The computer servers for the various mobile betting platforms will be placed at one of the state’s private casinos, of which four are up and running. So with the mobile bets being routed through the casinos, lawmakers and Cuomo made the case that mobile betting is allowed under the constitution.
They even wrote it into the law’s “legislative intent” section.
“It is the sense of the legislature that this provision is not contravened by a statute that authorizes the acceptance of a wager by an individual who is betting by virtual or electronic means and the wager is accepted through equipment located within a licensed gaming facility,” the law reads.
Which apps are allowed to take mobile bets?
To start, the Gaming Commission is giving four mobile apps approval to launch:
- DraftKings Sportsbook
- FanDuel
- Caesars Sportsbook
- BetRivers
Those are the four operators that have met all of the state’s regulatory requirements at this point, according to the commission.
All told, the commission granted mobile licenses to companies operating nine different apps.
The remaining five – BallyBet, BetMGM, Wynn Interactive, Resorts World Bet and PointsBet – are still awaiting final approval to launch.
Tagged
gambling
new york
smartphone
Jon Campbell
Jon Campbell covers the New York State Capitol for WNYC and Gothamist. Prior to that, he covered the Capitol for more than a decade for the USA TODAY Network. He has twice earned the Walter T. Brown Memorial Award, an honor given annually by the Legislative Correspondents Association alumni for outstanding state government coverage. Jon grew up in the Buffalo area and graduated from the University at Albany. Got a tip? Email Jon at [email protected] or Signal at JonCampbellNY.90.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .