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Mobile Sports Betting Kicks Off Online Betting

Mobile Sports Betting Kicks Off in New York

By Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief Updated: 12 January 2022

Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief

Blake Roberts is the founder of Betting.US and is currently heading the creative team as Editor in Chief. Born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia, Blake is a great sports fan, with football and basketball being his favorite. He’s our trusted voice for all betting-related matters.

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The state of New York has reached a major milestone in its gambling history following the recent launch of mobile sports betting.

The launch took place at the weekend, with four licensed platforms available for sports fans in the state to place their bets at. While four platforms have been licensed by the New York State Gaming Commission so far, there are more to come.

In total, nine online sports betting platforms have been approved by the commission, with licenses being awarded to four in time for the recent launch. Those that were able to start accepting bets on the day of the launch were DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars Sportsbook, and Rush Street Interactive.

Launch Ahead of the Super Bowl

The launch of mobile sports betting has delighted sports fans in the state. Many people were worried that the launch of mobile sports betting would not come before the ever-popular Super Bowl, so the timing of the launch has been welcomed by huge numbers of fans and officials.

There are still many other sportsbook operators that will receive their licenses over the coming days and weeks following approval by the commission. These include Bally Bet, Bet MGM, PointsBet, Resorts World, and Wynn Interactive. 

Some have expressed surprise that the launch has taken place well ahead of the Super Bowl, as the state had to sort out a lot of details beforehand.

This included the controversy over the 51 percent tax rate that was set for all operators by the state. Some had expressed concern that the high rate of tax would put operators off and might affect their ability to offer promotions to sports fans.

Speaking about the launch of mobile betting, Richard Schwartz, chief executive officer of RSI, said:

The long-awaited launch of online and mobile sports betting in New York – the largest online sports betting market by population in the United States – is here, and just in time.

He added that the full schedule of sports events currently taking place and set to take place over the coming months means that the New York mobile sports betting market could get off to a great start.

Tapping into the Popularity of Mobile Sports Betting

With its launch of mobile sports betting, New York will now finally be able to tap into the popularity of mobile gambling throughout the US. In addition, the state will be able to generate a lot of extra tax dollars as a result of the launch.

Over the past couple of years, the popularity of mobile betting has soared across the country. While mobile betting was already hugely popular in states where it was allowed, the impact of the global pandemic saw a surge in popularity.

With casinos and retail sports betting facilities closing or operating at reduced capacity during parts of the pandemic, many fans turned to mobile facilities. It is thought that this popularity will continue to increase, with many now preferring online sports betting compared to going out to a venue to place their bets.