Sports Betting News in America for Early November

Each week, sports betting around America is getting a lot of focus from sports bettors, the media, and state legislators. That’s why one of America’s fastest-growing industries is always finding itself in the news. Here is a couple of news stories of relevance from the early part of November 2021.

New Jersey Voters Say “No” to Betting on InState Amateur Sports

With the NCAA football bowl game season and NCAA BB seasons (men's and women's) coming soon, advocates for sports betting on college teams from and games being played in New Jersey were hopeful that voters would say yes to a ballot initiative to amend the state constitution allowing such sports betting.

Well, it looks like there won't be any sports betting on New Jersey college games or events for at least the next year. By a final tally of 57% to 43%, New Jersey voters said no to the initiative.

This initiative was of vital importance because the NCAA has scheduled a regional round of the Men’s NCAA Basketball tournament in 2025 in New Jersey. The games are scheduled to be played at the Prudential Center in Newark. This is a major problem for sports bettors who will be denied the chance to wager on major games that include some of the best basketball teams in America.

It's possible that a new initiative could be placed on the ballot for next year. The problem at hand is the results aren't likely to be much different given the gap between the no and yes votes. For now, this should be viewed as a settled issue.

Barstool Sportsbook App Now Available in Iowa

Barstool Sportsbook has officially received licensing to provide an online sports betting operation in Iowa. It took the online bookmaker only weeks to open operations after getting the green light from the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission.

Barstool joins a roster of 15 other online sports betting operators that are currently providing sports betting services to the residents of Iowa. in just the past month, Betway and Circa also opened operations in the state. By way of an explanation for the state's growth in online sports betting, it's worth noting that in-person registration is no longer required to open an online betting account. That opened the door for non-partnered sports betting operators to open shop in the state.

Iowa marks the 10th state in which Barstool is taking sports bets. The operator's recent expansion into the Midwest has included opening operations in Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana.

As a side note, the state's sports betting handle is setting new records with each passing month. In September, the state took in more than $210.4 million in sports wagers. That made Iowa the eighth state to clear $2 billion in all-time sports betting handle, dating back to mid-2018. It's worth noting that that recent data shows that over 86% of all sports bets in Iowa are coming through mobile apps. That's pretty much on par with the rest of the nation.​