In May 2018, the Supreme court ruled against the validity of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (aka PASPA). Now, each state has the ability to allow legalized sports betting for its residents.
With the right to decide the sports betting issue remanded to the state level, a number of states, including New Jersey, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Colorado, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia, joined Nevada as the only states where sports gamblers could legally bet on sports events.
Initially,New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware joined Nevada as the only states where residents were able to legally bet on sports and online casino games. In subsequent months, we have seen another 13 states join in the fray with another 6 or 7 states waiting in the wings.
Over the next two years, the U.S. gambling industry has grown beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. In August 2020, the industry pulled in more than $25 billion in gross handle for the month. That incredible handle translated to over $1.9 billion of revenue with approximately 9% of that going into state coffers.
While established gambling states like Nevada and New Jersey led the way, it was surprising to see states like Pennsylvania and Indiana contributing so much to the industry’s success.
