July 16 2019 was the big day when a New York casino accepted the first legal state-regulated sports bets.
In a spectacular launch, politicians and athletes gathered at the Rivers Casino, in Schenectady to place the first bets. Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy placed the first bet.
The inauguration of legal sports betting came about just over a year after the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA). PASPA prevented states from passing their own laws to allow legal sports betting. In May 2018, the court ruled that it was unconstitutional, paving the way for New York and other states to pass their own legislation.
New York actually passed its sports betting legislation five years ago. A 2013 referendum question paved the way for new casinos to open and for legal sports betting. The casinos opened, but sports betting remained off the menu until the Supreme Court ruling.
The delay of over a year between decision and sports betting launch was mainly political as various attempts were made to get specific sports betting legislation through the legislature.
Finally, in January the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) approved regulations to allow sports betting to take place.
The legal situation remains unsatisfactory in that sports betting is restricted to the four upstate casinos plus the state’s tribal casinos. No online or mobile sports betting is allowed.
The last attempt to legislate for a more up-to-date legal framework failed in June. State Sen. Joseph Addabbo Jr managed to get his S17-D bill through the Senate by a vote of 57-5. Unfortunately the Governor Andrew Cuomo did not support it, and even though the votes were probably there in the Assembly, it was not put to a vote.
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New York Sports Betting 2019: Current Status
New York Online Sports Betting Bill Dies In The House Without Vote
https://www.legalsportsreport.com/30379/ny-sports-betting-addabbo-cuomo/
https://www.legalsportsreport.com/30367/ny-sports-betting-legal-opinions/
A New Sports Betting Bill Has Arrived In New York–Here’s A Look Inside
Where can I make legal sports bets in New York?
Current legislation restricts sports betting to the four licensed upstate casinos plus tribal casinos. Currently seven casinos have sports betting in operation. One more will follow in the Fall and three others are likely to enter the market in the near term.
First the Up-State casinos:
Rivers Casino & Resort, Schenectady
—partnered with Rush Street Gaming using a sports betting platform developed by Kambi.
Sports betting takes place at the Rivers Sportsbook, a 5,000 square foot equipped with 18 individual VIP club chairs and table seating for around 80 customers. Thee are five private booths each with TV monitors and each spacious enough for six people.
There is a 53 foot long x 9 foot high video wall with 22 additional 86” TV monitors. There is no excuse for missing the action.
14 betting kiosks cater for those comfortable with the user-friendly technology and six betting windows for those who prefer the personal touch. Kiosks are open for bets 24 hours a day. Betting window opening hours are:
- Monday-Thursday 10am-12am
- Friday 10am-1am
- Saturday 9am-1am
- Sunday 9am-12am
The casino is located at 1 Rush St, Schenectady, NY 12305.
Tioga Downs, Nicholas
—partnered with FanDuel part of the Flutter Group formerly known as Paddy Power Betfair. Tioga also has a deal with Australian company PointsBet although it looks like this is for online sports betting so is not yet available.
Smaller than the Rivers Sportsbook, but still substantial, the Tioga Downs Sportsbook occupies 2,600 square feet close to the casino’s main entrance.
There are eight betting windows and 27 separate video displays including a large video wall. Seating is available for over 50 customers including 12 lounge seats, seven high tables and two drinks rails.
The sportsbook is open:
- Monday – Thursday 10am – 1am
- Friday 10am – 2am
- Saturday 9am – 2am
- Sunday 9am – 1am
Tioga Downs is at 2384 W River Rd, Nichols, NY 13812.
Del Lago Resort Casino, Waterloo
—partnered with DraftKings
The new sportsbooks at the Del Lago Casino covers over 6,000 square feet of action. There are four betting windows and a total of 23 betting kiosks. Kiosks are open 24/7.
Games and odds are displayed on over 1,000 square feet of video screens. For in-game betting there are real-time odds boards. One differentiator offered at Del Lago is that there are over 30 different varieties of beer on tap. Opening hours are:
- Sunday – Thursday 9am-1am
- Friday & Saturday 9am-2am
The Del Lago Resort Casino is at 1133 NY-414, Waterloo, NY 13165
Resorts World Catskills, Monticello
—partnered with UK company bet365. Notably bet365 has an equity stake in the casino.
Resorts World calls its sports betting area Sportsbook 360. That’s because there is a bar at the center surrounded by 360 degrees of video screens. In the 6,000 suare foot area there are 35 75-inch flat screen displays plus a 9 foot by 16 foot high definition screen.
The space comfortably seats over 100 and there are 14 betting kiosks open 24 hours a day to take bets when the betting counter is closed.
Opening hours are:
- Monday & Tuesday 5:30pm – 1:30am
- Wednesday – Sunday 10am – 1:30am
The Resorts World Casino is at 888 Resorts World Dr, Monticello, NY 12701
Three tribal casinos run by the Oneida Indian Nation also have sports betting up and running. All are partnered with Caesar’s Entertainment using a platform provided by Scientific Games:
Turning Stone Resort Casino, Verona
Known as “The Lounge with Caesar’s Sports,” the Turning Stone sports betting area has gone for a chic look. Blue leather high-backed chairs and a long translucent bar provide a modern aesthetic. The bar offers signature cocktails and a range of craft beers.
There are 17 screens available to display the action. The largest is 48 feet long and 9 feet high.
Opening hours are:
- Monday – Thursday: 10:00am – 1:00am
- Friday: 10:00am – 1:00am (Bar open until 2:00am)
- Saturday: 9:00am – 1:00am (Bar open until 2:00am)
- Sunday: 9:00am – 1:00am
The Turning Stone Casino as at 5218 Patrick Rd, Verona, NY 13478.
Point Place Casino, Bridgeport
Built along similar lines to the Turning Point Casino, the Point Place sportsbook is also known as “The Lounge with Caesar’s Sports.”
The sportsbook area boasts a24-foot high-resolution video wall plus 30 big LED screens. There are also luxury VIP areas with their own dedicated screens where you can follow the action.
Opening hours are:
- Monday – Thursday: 10:00am – 1:00am
- Friday: 10:00am – 1:00am (Bar open until 2:00am)
- Saturday: 9:00am – 1:00am (Bar open until 2:00am)
- Sunday: 9:00am – 1:00am
Point Place Casino is located at 450 NY-31, Bridgeport, NY 13030.
Yellow Brick Road Casino, Chittenango
The third “The Lounge with Caesar’s Sports,” is at the Oneida Nation’s Yellow Brick Road Casino.
The lounge has a 32 foot video wall and over 30 large display TVs, the largest six of these have 85 inch screens. There are seven VIP areas known as “caves” for exclusive game-day events.
All in all the area offers space for over 200 sports fans ad there are dozens of recliners so you can lie back as you watch the action.
Opening hours are:
- Monday – Thursday: 10:00am – 1:00am
- Friday: 10:00am – 1:00am (Bar until 2:00am)
- Saturday: 9:00am – 1:00am (Bar until 2:00am)
- Sunday: 9:00am – 1:00am
Yellow Brick Road Casino is at 800 W Genesee St, Chittenango, NY 13037.
Also opening shortly will be:
- Akwesasne Mohawk Casino, Hogansburg—partnered with The Stars Group which has announced a merger with Flutter for 2020. Opening is due in the Fall. Sports betting will operate under the FoxBet
- Three further Seneca Indian Nation casinos are considering launching sports betting in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Salamanca.
There is no online or mobile sports betting so placing bets from home is not legal. This won’t change unless the legislature can get a new sports betting act on the books.
What’s the minimum age to bet?
While New York allows some gambling, such as buying lottery tickets, for 18 year olds, the minimum age for sports betting is 21.
Can I make bets online or on my mobile device?
New York does not allow online gambling or mobile gambling. You are not allowed to place sports bets using your mobile device.
There is no legal online poker or casino games permitted in New York. If you are playing these games or sports betting online while in New York you are playing at an unregulated offshore site. You have no legal protection in the event anything goes wrong.
You can play online poker legally at Global Poker and online casino games at Chumba.
If you are in this situation, you should start lobbying your state senator and assemblyman to approve a bill to allow online gaming in New York.
Are the odds the same as in Las Vegas?
PASPA carved out an exemption for states which already had legal sports betting. That is how Las Vegas has managed to continue with sports betting since 1992.
The odds quoted in Las Vegas vary from casino to casino depending on which technology platform they use. Top Vegas casino owner Caesars Entertainment is partnered with three of New York’s sports betting casinos, so the odds should match those on offer in Vegas quite closely.
What differences there are will usually be the result of local promotions and special offers.
The gambling tax rate in Nevada is 6.75 percent while it is 10 percent in New York. The difference is not big enough to have any real effect on the odds published in New York.
What games can I bet on?
The NYSGC allows betting on 11 sports. Betting is restricted to specific tournaments or leagues. Click on the name of the sport to see exactly what bets are allowed for each sport:
- Auto Racing–NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Outdoor Truck Series, Formula One and IndyCar Series
- Baseball–MLB and Olympics
- Basketball–NBA, WNBA and NCAA Division I
- Boxing–Professional Title and Qualifying Title Bouts Sanctioned by the IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO and the Olympics
- UFC/MMA Fighting Sports–UFC and Bellator MMA
- Football–NFL, CFL and NCAA FBS
- Golf–PGA Tour Events, PGA Tour Champions, LPGA, European Tour and Ryder Cup
- Hockey–NHL, NCAA Division I and Olympics
- Rugby–“World Rugby” World Cup
- Soccer–IFA World Cup and Qualifiers, MLS, UEFA Champions League (Group Stage and Beyond), English Premier League, Spanish la Liga, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A, French Ligue I, Mexican Liga Bancomer, UEFA Europa League (Group Stage and Beyond), CONCACAF Gold Cup (Group Stage and Beyond) and CONMEBOL Copa America (Group Stage and Beyond)
- Tennis–USTA Pro Events, ATP Tour Events (500 Series and Above), WTA Tour Events (International and Above) and Grand Slam Tournaments (Main Events Only)
Fans of local college teams are not allowed to bet on events where their home team is participating.
The NYSGC will update this list as time goes on but the regulatory mood probably won’t allow betting on esports or on esoteric events such as the Oscars. New Jersey experimented with allowing bets on the Oscars in 2019.
What bet types are allowed for New York sports bets?
As with the range of permitted sports, the NYSGC specifies what bet types are allowed for each sport. Some of the most popular bet types allowed by the regulations are:
Moneyline bets
Moneyline bets are simple bets on the outcome of a game. The odds on moneyline bets are slightly more complicated if you aren’t an experienced sports bettor.
Odds are quoted as a positive or negative number. For example an NFL game between the Buffalo Bills and Dallas Cowboys might see moneyline odds of:
- Buffalo Bills +150
- Dallas Cowboys -110
The + sign means that the Bills are the underdogs in the game. That means a wager on the Bills will return more money than your original stake if they win. If you bet $100 you would win $150—hence the odds are +150.
The Cowboys are the favorite so you will win less for every dollar you bet. You have to bet $110 to win $100.
Futures bets
Futures bets are on events where the outcome will no be known for some time. Allowable futures bets are specified precisely by the NYSGC. For example if you’re an NBA fan and want to bet on the winner of the Stanley Cup, you can.
Spread bets
Spread bets are not bets on which team will win, but on whether a team will beat expectations. In the moneyline example above the Bills are the underdogs. With a spread bet you can still win even if the Bills lose the game. It’s a great way to bet on your team when you know they are unlikely to win.
The sportsbook quotes a spread which is based on their central estimate of the most likely score. If your team wins by more than the spread, you win your bet. If your team loses by less than the spread, you win.
Totals bets
The winner of a match is irrelevant in a totals bet. The bet depends only on the total of both teams’ scores at the end of the match. You bet on whether the final score total will be over or under a figure quoted.
In a recent baseball match between the Dodgers and the Padres, the totals bet was quoted as:
- LA Dodgers O 10.5 +100
- SD Padres U 10.5 -130
In this game the bookmaker expects the most probable total of both teams’ scores to be 10.5. You can take the over or the under and still win. The difference in the odds quoted for each provides the bookmaker’s profit.
The O and the U next to each team’s name differentiates the over from the under.
Parlays
Parlay bets are extremely popular because they connect several simple bets in a way which means you can have a big win from a small initial wager.
In a parlay bet you bet on several games normally all taking place on the same day. Instead of making individual bets on each game you make a single wager on all your bets. To win the parlay you must win each bet. Even if only one is wrong, you lose the whole wager.
The chances of guessing the winners of multiple games are much lower than predicting just a single game. In consequence, the odds you get for making a parlay wager are much higher than for a simple moneyline bet.
A stake of only a few dollars can create a six figure win—if you get very, very lucky.
In-Game Betting
In-game or in-play betting refers to bets placed after a match has started. The NYSGC allows all its permitted bets for each sport to be made in-game.
There are sports betting taxes, do I have to pay them?
New York levies a 10 percent gambling tax on sports betting, the same as for other gambling games. This tax is paid by the operator, not by the customer.
If you do win, your gains are normally taxable. If you are in doubt talk to a financial expert.
Daily Fantasy Sports In New York
Daily fantasy sports are legal and regulated in New York.
On Aug 3, 2016, the state enacted a law that allows DFS sites to serve the New York population. Major operators like DraftKings and FanDuel, which had previously been forced to abandon the state under an order from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, returned to the state.
A 2017 report from the NYSGC showed DFS operators generated $18,621,700 in gross gaming revenue in New York from September 2016 through January 2017. In other words, they have averaged $3,724,340 each month.
The state collected 15 percent, or a total of $2,796,182, in taxes from DFS operators during that period.
Extrapolated estimates would put annual DFS revenues in New York at $44.6 million per year with taxes around $6.7 million.
How big is the NY sports betting market?
The American Gaming Association estimates Americans bet $154 billion on sports in 2016. At the time, they wagered nearly all of that money through illegal channels, like personal bookies and offshore websites.
Based upon per-capita rates of betting, New York’s 19.75 million residents likely bet around $9.38 billion on sports in 2016.
Who is the regulator if I have a problem?
If you have any problems with bets you have placed or any other issue with a specific operator, you should first talk to the casino management. If that doesn’t work, or you have any general issues to do with sports betting you can contact the regulator:
New York State Gaming Commission
- Main Office: (518) 388-3300
- General Questions or Comments: info@gaming.ny.gov
- Freedom of Information Requests: Foil-Request@gaming.ny.gov
- Lottery Security: (518) 388-3416
Mailing Address:
New York State Gaming Commission, PO Box 7500, Schenectady, New York 12301-7500
NYSGC Facilities Offices
The NYSGC also has facilities offices at the main casinos:
Turning Stone Casino
PO Box 808,Verona, NY 13476
Phone: (315) 363-2803 / Available 9am – 5pm
Mohawk Casino
P.O. Box 869, Hogansburg, New York 13655
Phone: (518) 358-6302 / Available 9am – 5pm
Seneca Niagara Casino
P.O. Box 1050, Niagara Falls, New York 14303
Phone: (716) 284-5578 / Available 9am – 5pm
Seneca Allegany Casino
PO Box 546, Salamanca, NY 14779
Phone: (716) 945-4813 / Available 9am – 5pm
Seneca Buffalo Casino
One Fulton Street, Buffalo, NY 14204
Phone: (716) 710-4449 / Available 9am – 5pm
Yellow Brick Road Casino
800 West Genesee Street, Chittenango, NY 13037
Phone: (315) 366-9427 / Available 9am – 5pm
Resorts World New York City Casino
110-00 Rockaway Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11420
Phone: (718) 215-2828
Empire City Casino Yonkers Raceway
810 Yonkers Ave., Yonkers, NY 10704
Phone: (914) 968-4200
Saratoga Casino & Raceway
342 Jefferson St.
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Phone: (518) 584-2110
Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack
5857 Route 96, Farmington, NY 14425
Phone: (585) 924-3232
Monticello Casino & Raceway
204 State Route 17B, Monticello, NY 12701
Phone: (845) 794-4100
Hamburg Gaming at The Fairgrounds
5600 McKinley Parkway, Hamburg, NY 14075
Phone: (716) 646-6109
Tioga Downs Casino
2384 W. River Rd., Nichols, NY 13812-1406
Phone: 1-888-WIN-TIOGA
Vernon Downs Casino & Hotel
4229 Stuhlman Rd., Vernon, NY 13476
Phone: 1-877-88-VERNON
Batavia Downs
8315 Park Rd., Batavia, NY 14020
Phone: (585) 343-3750
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