Sports betting has for years played hard-to-get with the players from the US since it used to be available only in Nevada. This caused a lot of trouble for the sports lovers who wanted to bet on their favourites, thus making the game more thrilling.
Finally, in 2018, the US supreme court heard the voices of the common people and decided to pass the bill to allow legal sports betting in other parts of the country, too. The first state that went legal with sports betting was New Jersey, after which all the other states set their mind on following its example.
However, we should not forget that we live in a modern society where technology plays a great role in almost everything we do. There are machines designed to help you in your daily activities, with mobile phones leading the movement and constantly pushing the boundaries.
If you are from Canada have a look at this website for the list of betting sites that lets you place bet using your mobile.
People rely on their phones for paying the bills, ordering food, or even working from a distant place. That’s why it’s no surprise people expect from their phones to help them with some less important activities in order to save them some time, and there came the need for creating sports betting apps.
Now you can come back home from work, jump on your couch and place a bet via your mobile phone. The only thing left to do is order pizza, open a beer and wait for your favourite game to start. But since this system is relatively new, sometimes people are not sure how to choose the right sports betting app, and we decided to address this issue and create a perfect atmosphere for you.
If you decide to use the apps that you find here, you can rest assured that you will be able to legally bet on your favourite sports. You will find anything there, starting from the major leagues such as the NBA, MBL, MLS, and big tennis tournaments, to horse-racing.
No matter if you use an Android mobile phone or iPhone, the service is the same. It applies to iPads and tablets as well and, depending on the type of the device, you will either find it in the App Store or Google Play Store.
Sports Betting In US States
Nevada
Nevada was the first state in the US to legalise sports betting nine years ago; therefore, it is the one with the most experience on the matter.
Consequently, being the first one to start with all this, it is also the first one to launch mobile sports betting apps.
Since it all started a long time ago, Nevada now offers a variety of choices that are already available in your online stores. The online sports betting in the US doesn’t make a difference between a resident and a non-resident as long as you are somewhere on the inside of the state border.
It is based on a location using Geolocation technology, which makes it impossible to use the apps if you are physically outside the state.
While some of the apps might allow you to enter if you are not within the state borders, some others might only enable you to see their offers, but without letting you place an actual bet. Also, to be able to use the apps, state users will be required to register in person in Nevada, unlike New Jersey which has the option to do it through the app itself.
New Jersey
New Jersey is the city that is slowly taking over when it comes to sports betting in the US.
At the moment, Jersey is dominating the US sports betting market with more than ten companies that specialise in online and mobile sports betting within the state, while still offering good old bookie venues for the old-fashioned customers.
A great number of bookmakers, as well as some casinos, are offering live betting on the majority of the most popular sports.
The story got even more interesting when some of the most popular sports teams have partnered with some of the official gaming partners, thus making sports betting one of the frequently practised spare-time activities.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is one of the states that has recently started its sports betting journey through some of the casinos. Some of them have started with their sports betting offers while others are still in the process of launching the new business and are coming soon.
For those who haven’t started with the work just yet, the approvals are pending and are expected to be given out soon. The casinos or bookies will only be able to work on their sports betting offers once their approvals are confirmed.
It is expected that this process of getting the job done takes some time and, until now, casino games have been the main point of interest for the players from Pennsylvania.
However, the players from Pennsylvania have shown a great interest in the sports betting market, apart from the existing casino offers. This year has been very important for this state, and they started it on a good note. Hopefully, they will finish everything they planned and enable their players to spend their free time by making watching sports useful.
West Virginia
West Virginia belongs to the states that started offering mobile sports betting across the state, but they also implemented their own rules that have to be followed if one would like to play and win together with their favourite team.
This is the third state that started with the legal mobile sports betting, and it covers all the major sports and leagues except for eSports and High School teams. They do not allow minors to place any bets, plus they don’t offer betting on events in which the participants are not over the legal age limit.
Iowa
If you are 21 or older, you are entitled to use mobile gambling on the territory of Iowa.
The only tiny inconvenience is that, before doing it via your phone, you have to physically visit the land-based casino and register there.
But don’t worry, you are required to this only the first time you decide to bet online. After that, you can use your phone and bet as much as you want.
Other States
A few other states that have legalised sports betting industry are Oregon, New Mexico, Mississippi, Arkansas, Indiana, New York, Rhode Island, and Delaware.
There is also a group of states that have passed legislation but still haven’t officially launched it. The states that belong to this group are Tennessee, Montana, Illinois, North Carolina, Washington DC, and Colorado.
As it usually goes, monkey see, monkey do. Therefore, following the example of the crowd, a lot of states have considered or passed laws in an attempt to legalise online sports betting. We are talking about states such as California, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kentucky, Michigan, South Carolina, Maryland, Connecticut, and Louisiana.
The Law
From 1992, there was a black cloud over the sports betting market in the United States in the shape of a federal ban. The ban lasted until 2018 under the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act — PASPA. Only four states, including Nevada, Delaware, Oregon, and Montana, got immunity due to previously allowing sports betting on the territory within their state borders.
The legality of PASPA was challenged by New Jersey, which triggered the change of the situation. In 2017, the Supreme Court had the opportunity to get involved in the arguments, after which SCOTUS managed to reverse the ban and outvote PASPA 6-3. This decision was crucial for sports betting to enter the US market.
Conclusion
While Nevada was the only state that was offering games of chance for a long period of time, now the situation has drastically changed. Other states are doing whatever they can to start earning from offering sports betting to their customers.
Only a few states have actually started with it, but there’s a lot more waiting in line to go legal and follow the example of the minority. Considering the fact that more states are getting interested in introducing sports betting, we can say that very soon it will be available in half of the country.
The reason for the change is that the states are always trying to find some new income sources, and sports betting is a very lucrative market that generates a multi-billion dollar profit every year. Before the legalisation movement, US citizens could only place bets through offshore gambling websites or illegal bookies.
It will not take long before all the states legalise mobile sports betting, and the introduction of the apps that help playing on the move is an inevitable part.
