New York Casinos

History Of Gambling In New York

Gambling in New York dates back to the 1600s. New York saw extensive dry spells when most forms of gambling were illegal except lottery. All in all, New York has and is still fighting legal battles to introduce iGaming to New Yorkers. Let’s check out exactly how and when major gambling milestones were achieved.

• 1656: Gambling on Sabbath was banned.
• 1776: Lottery was authorized by Continental Congress to fund the war against the British.
• 1833: New York was the first state to implement a constitutional ban on lotteries.
• 1967: The ban on the lottery was lifted in New York.
• 1970: Legalization of off-track betting to eliminate illegal betting and increase revenue.
• 1988: Multi-State Lottery Association was established. Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress. This permitted casinos on Indian territory.
• 2001: In order to raise revenue after 9/11, many Indian casinos were legalized. Racetracks were converted into Racinos after Video Lottery Terminals were allowed to operate at many racetracks.
• 2002: The first multistate lottery tickets were sold by New York. The Big Game was renamed to the now popular Mega Millions.
• 2004: The first Racino was launched.
• 2006: New York joined the US Powerball.
• 2013: The Upstate NY Economic Development Gaming Act was passed by the New York State Legislature. Casino gaming was legalized.
• 2019: Sports betting was legalized by the Supreme Court.
• 2021: Online sports gambling and mobile gambling were legalized.

Is it Legal to Gamble Online in New York?

As mentioned above, New York has deep gambling roots. After a tough and long battle, land-based gambling was finally legalized. But is online gambling legal in New York? Unfortunately, it is not.

Currently, only online sports betting has been legalized. Casino gambling online is yet to be legalized. However, if you wish to gamble online, you can do it for free without a deposit. This means that you can gamble online without depositing real money.

Online Casino

Legal online gambling in NY is yet to be introduced. But, that does not mean that you can not enjoy online gambling.

If you are wondering how to gamble online in New York, you need to be aware of a few facts. For instance, you need to be 18 years or older and must be residing in New York. Plus, you cannot gamble online with real money. Any real money online casinos in New York are operating illegally. So, you can enjoy online gambling by playing for free.

Following are some of the major casino game categories featured on the virtual platforms.

Online Poker

At land-based casinos, you can find numerous poker tables, but online poker is not available for real money. So, you can try your hand at poker on the online casinos in New York but cannot deposit real money to gamble.

Online Sports Betting

Fortunately, mobile and online sports betting has been finally legalized. Currently, no sportsbook apps have been launched. But, 8 online sports betting apps are expected to be launched in late 2021 or early 2022. These apps will be available to anyone residing in New York City and over the age of 21.

These apps will allow betting on virtually every kind of game, including Super Bowl, NFL, NBA, NCAA Football, NASCAR Auto Racing, MLB, and much more. In short, you will have access to numerous sports and tournaments around the world to bet on.

Online Lottery

The lottery has been legal for quite a long time. And now, innovations have enabled users to buy and play the lottery online. Various kinds of lottery games are available online in New York. You can even buy subscriptions for a specific number of days. Plus, apps have now been introduced to play lottery games on iOS and Android phones.

 Some of these are as follows:

Lotto Games

• Powerball: With a $2 ticket, players have the chance to win millions as a prize. There is also a Powerplay session that can be activated with an extra dollar. This session increases the prize value 10 times.
• Mega Millions: Operating since 2002, Mega Millions has also seen winners taking millions home. The draws are held every Tuesday and Friday. Just like the Powerplay option in Powerball, Mega Millions has a Megaplier option to allow players to maximize their winnings.
• New York Lotto: Although not as popular as Powerball and Mega Millions, New York Lotto is also widely played.

Draw Games

• Cash4Life: This game has been functional since 2014 and is a joint venture between New York and New Jersey. The jackpot offers up to $1000 per day for life.
• Quick Draw: This game is much like Bingo and Keno. The draws are held after every 4 minutes throughout the day and sometimes even through the night. You can win as much as $100,000.
• Pick 10: These draws take place at night every day. Players have the chance to win a massive $500,000 prize.

Online Bingo

Just like other casino games, online Bingo is also currently illegal in New York State. However, residents of New York can enjoy bingo at online sites that are based outside the US.

Online Bingo has multiple features like auto-win and auto-dab. These virtual bingo games also have greater jackpot prizes.

Online Horse Race Betting

Online horse race betting is legal in New York. There are many online sites offering off-track pari-mutuel betting on horses. The most prominent and best site to bet on horses is TVG. It even offers a generous welcome bonus to the new players. You can enjoy risk-free bets and make deposits via the variety of payment options offered by the site.

You just have to be 18 or older to legally bet on horses online. Betting on international races is also offered by these virtual sites.

Online Sweepstakes

New York legally offers a variety of sweepstakes games at multiple online casinos. These games do not require the player to purchase any ticket to enter the game. But, the player can still win massive amounts of cash by chance. Online Poker sweepstakes are also available in New York.

Some of the sites offering Sweepstakes include Chumba Casino and LuckyLand Casino.

Daily Fantasy Sports

If you are a fan of online sports games, you can enjoy a multitude of daily fantasy sports games in New York. Popular sites like FanDuel DFS, Draft Kings DFS, and MKF Prop Betting allow New York residents to play fantasy sports.

A variety of sports are offered, including:

• NFL DFS: Football attracts a massive player base which ensures huge prize pools.
• NBA DFS: Another popular sport on the list is NBA. Basketball fans can enjoy fantasy NBA and get a chance to win great prizes.
• NHL DFS: Hockey fans can also enjoy fantasy sports in New York.
• College Football DFS, College Basketball DFS, Soccer DFS, and Tennis DFS are also some of the popularly available sports.

Is It Safe to Gamble at a New York Online Casino?

New York online casino real money is not available in the state. Although all forms of gambling are legal when it comes to land-based or in-person games, online gambling is still illegal in New York. So, in order to play online slots NY or any other kind of casino game, you have two options. You can either opt to play for free without depositing real money. Or, you can opt for the casino sites operating outside New York. However, the safety of these offshore casino sites is not guaranteed by the New York authorities.

There is a wide range of game providers that power online casinos. Among all, some of the most leading providers include:

• Yggdrasil: Operating since 2013, Yggdrasil is a leading game provider known for producing incredible video slots with striking graphics. Yggdrasil has won multiple awards. Its games are RNG certified, ensuring fair gambling.
• Pragmatic Play: Another award-winning game provider, Pragmatic Play, offers a variety of games, including slots, bingo, and scratch cards. It is most recognized for its live dealer games, offering an immersive gambling experience. Pragmatic Play is a mobile-focused provider.
• Evolution Gaming: The pioneer of live games is Evolution Gaming. This provider has been in action since 2006 and has released popular games like Crazy Time and Dream Catcher. Evolution Gaming features games with various stake levels.
• NetEnt: NetEnt is one of the oldest game providers in the industry. Currently, it features more than 200 games, including slots, table games, etc. It is renowned for exceptional graphics and high-quality animations. Gonzo’s Quest and Mega Fortune are examples of NetEnt’s excellent creations.
• International Gaming Technology (IGT): As the name suggests, IGT is a multi-national game provider. It has more than 150 games to offer. IGT is widely known for providing incredible progressive jackpot games. It also offers a number of table games.
• PlayTech: This is an exceptional game provider renowned for providing top-notch games. It develops progressive slots, bingo games, etc. The games by PlayTech feature numerous bonuses and free spins.

Gambling Age Law

In order to gamble legally at casinos, you must abide by the laws of the state. This goes for both land-based and online gambling. According to the New York online gambling laws, players must be 21 years or older to play casino games and bet with real money.

Players 18 years or older can play bingo and lottery games and bet on horse races. They cannot gamble with real money on casino games. However, for land-based casinos, 18 years or older players can enjoy gambling if the casino doesn’t serve alcohol.

To make sure that the gambling laws are abided by, casinos implement stringent procedures to verify the age of the player. This serves to eliminate underage gambling.

Land-Based Casinos in New York 

Although New York can’t rival other states when it comes to online gambling, it does offer an impressive range of land-based casinos. So, if you are looking for an authentic gambling experience, New York doesn’t disappoint.

Currently, you can find more than a dozen land-based casinos and racinos. All these are impressive gambling platforms. Some of these are tribal, while others are commercial casinos. You will also find gambling platforms on riverboats and cruise ships. Most of the casinos are open round-the-clock. In short, New Yorkers can enjoy non-stop entertainment at any casino of their choosing.

The biggest casinos in New York include Resorts World Casino, Empire City Casino, and Seneca Niagara. These casinos offer a multitude of games.

Some note-worthy land-based casinos in New York are mentioned below:

Will New York Regulate Online Gambling In The Future?

This question still cannot be answered objectively. We are skeptical about NY online gambling as there are no legislations in the process to legalize online gambling.

New York is a leading state in the US and rivals many neighboring states when it comes to land-based casinos. But, when we talk about NY online casino apps, New York falls significantly short. New York is known to have the most stringent gambling laws and penalties for not abiding by them. Although online sports betting has finally been legalized after 2 year long legal battle, online casino gambling still stays illegal.

However, there are no laws that restrict New Yorkers from gambling online. This means that New Yorkers can enjoy online gambling at offshore sites. There are no repercussions for such online gambling. The only restriction is on operating online casinos in New York State.

In 2019, a bill was put forth by State Senator Joseph Addabbo. Through this bill, online poker, casino gambling, and sports betting were supposed to be legalized. Unfortunately, Senate Bill 17D did not make it to the end.

With no more bills in sight, it is unlikely that online gambling will be legalized any time soon.