New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is finally supporting online sports wagering in his state, reports the New York Daily News. Sports wagering is legal in several brick-and-mortar locations around New York, but looking at a multi-billion dollar budget deficit after the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged his state, the revenue potential of legalizing online sports wagering looks too good to pass up.
“New York has the potential to be the largest sports wagering market in the United States, and by legalizing online sports betting we aim to keep millions of dollars in tax revenue here at home, which will only strengthen our ability to rebuild from the COVID-19 crisis,” Cuomo said in a statement.
Nearby New Jersey handled a total of $931.6 million in sports wagers in November of 2020, outpacing Nevada and breaking a previous one-month record.
However, rather than tie the sports wagering companies to existing casino licenses, Cuomo hopes to change up the revenue model by allowing the state lottery to be in charge, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
“We want to do sports betting the way the state runs the lottery where the state gets the revenues,” Cuomo said in a briefing at the state capital. “Many states have done sports betting but they basically allow casinos to run their own gambling operations. That makes a lot of money for casinos but it makes minimal money for the state.
“And I'm not here to make casinos a lot of money. I'm here to raise funds for the state. So we have a different model for sports betting.”
Read more at the New York Daily News and the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
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