In the United States, all eyes are on the topic of sports betting as the United States Supreme Court is set to rule on Christie vs NCAA next year. The case involves the state of New Jersey and the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. If the court rules in favor of New Jersey, sports betting will be available across the nation. Several states have already prepared to cash in on the industry if SCOTUS rules for NJ and it seems Delaware is ready to offer more than just parlays or multi-gaming football betting.
The PASPA was created to ban sports betting across the United States, with four individual states grandfathered in. Nevada is currently the only state in the US with fully functioning sports betting and Delaware is limited to what they can offer. In a recent report, Rick Geisenberger, the State Finance Director, stated that Delaware may be ready to introduce single game wagering just a few weeks after the ruling, if the option is made available.
According to the Director, if the state manages to get in the market quicker than others, they could see an upside. The state is reportedly working on a roll out, so they can be ready if the time comes. According to Vernon Kirk, the director of the state lottery, the plan of Governor John Carney is to confine wagering within the casinos of the state, consisting of bets placed on MLB, NHL, NBA, NFL and out of state NCAA teams.
Delaware does not need to take legislative action as they are allowed to offer sports betting based on the PASPA. However, according to Kirk, the state will have their attorneys look at the law just to be sure that no legislative changes need to be made in order to get started. Sports betting would certainly help the state, providing a boost to the three current casinos.
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