• Sports Betting USA held a conference in NYC this past Tuesday where legal mobile sports betting for the state of New York was a topic.
• New York currently has four casinos in the upstate area where residents may wager on sporting events.
• Many legislators in the state are pushing for legalization as so many residents are traveling to New Jersey to use their mobile platform, allowing the Garden State to benefit in revenue.

NEW YORK – The standstill on the issue of New York mobile sports betting continues. In June, four upstate casinos received approval to open up legal sportsbooks, however, lawmakers were never sold on the idea of residents using their phones to place wagers on the games. One person, in general, has qualms on mobile sports betting and that person is basically the decision-maker himself, Governor Andrew Cuomo.

“Sports betting, first of all, does not make you that much money,” said Cuomo earlier this year. “They raised something like $13 million — $13 million is a rounding error in our state budget. I am not a fan of when you can bet anytime from your cellphone.”

Legislation for the state of New York opens back up in January where there is hope that changes can be made to the sports betting bill to involve mobile wagers. Cuomo maintains that this type of wager is not constitutional and for it to even be considered, a change in the constitution needs to be made. However, Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr knows mobile sports wagers will become a reality for the state at some point.

“It’s not a question of if; it’s when,” said Addabbo Jr. “It’s going to happen. People want to bet in New York. They don’t want to get in the car and drive two hours upstate, and they’d rather not get in the car and go over the bridge to New Jersey, but they’re doing that now.”

New Yorkers have been crossing the bridge into New Jersey and stopping at rest stops to place their mobile sports bets. While talks should begin in January, a report that should’ve been out by now listing the good and bad of making mobile sports betting legal will not be coming out until April 2020. While there is no telling what the report will say, Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow is sure it will be in favor of launching the mobile platform.

“I know what the report’s going to say: It’s going to say, ‘Do it,’” Pretlow said.

It is estimated that a minimum of 30% of New Jersey’s mobile sports betting business is coming from residents of New York. As it stands, the Garden State gets 80% of all of their wagers on sporting events through the use of cellphone applications. If  in 2020 New York sports betting is apporved, they would become the biggest state in the US to offer sports wagers from every available platform.