Betting real money online for adults of legal gambling age in their jurisdiction, in the United States, is already a reality. But because of the convoluted and constantly changing federal, state and Department of Justice opinions regarding bingo, poker, the lottery, casino games, horse races and sporting events where a wager takes place on the Internet, there is mass confusion regarding who can legally bet online in the US. You probably know that Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware all offer US government-sanctioned, state licensed online gambling options. That is awesome, but it stinks if you do not live in those states. According to USA federal gambling laws, a state may regulate and deliver cyber wagering opportunities for its residents and travelers, but you must be located within the boundaries of that state to participate.
And when the UIGEA made it illegal for a US-based company to process Internet gambling transactions, many US citizens thought that meant the end of legitimate and legal Web gambling. But there is currently no law, either at the state or federal levels, that restricts or seeks to prosecute American citizens for gambling online. And to date, not a single US resident has been charged with online gambling as an illegal activity. The laws in place are to keep shady banking companies and less than reputable financial institutions away from American Internet gamblers, and that is a good thing. But as long as informed US Internet casino, sportsbook and poker gamblers stick to legitimately licensed and reputable legal online poker and casino gambling providers, they can enjoy safe and legal virtual wagering. The same holds true for legal sports betting.
Here is how it works. When many jurisdictions, countries and municipalities around the world realized that the United States was taking a hard stance regarding US companies providing Internet gambling options, they stepped in to fill that void. Costa Rica is just one example of a substantial government which provides licenses to companies which qualify for offering virtual poker, casino gaming and sports betting for real money. Costa Rica is not located inside, nor governed by, the United States. Therefore, they can legally provide Internet gambling licenses to companies, and those companies can in turn support and honor US as well as international gamblers, or whoever they wish to cater to.
And if you prefer to keep your money at home there is good news on the horizon, even if you do not live in one of the three current states which legally offer regulated Internet gambling. Most industry analysts see California and New York as offering some type of cyber gambling product no later than 2015. State legislators in Mississippi have commissioned an Internet gambling study, and are considering offering some type of bill which would legalize that activity in their state. Illinois is aggressively pushing to become the fourth state to offer some form of Web gambling, and Pennsylvania, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana and Massachusetts all have some type of legislation or proposal for legalized Net gambling in place. That is great, but you don’t have to wait.
When we built this website, our goal was, and continues to be, keeping you informed as to your legal betting options as a US resident. Currently the good news is that your state might be one of those which will, in the near future, adopt a legal online gambling attitude. But as long as you are a responsible adult of legal gambling age in any of the 50 US states, you can currently shuffle up and deal, double down, yell “bingo!”, buy international and national lottery tickets and play virtual slots online, for real money. You can do so from your smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop PC, any time night or day, and from the comfort and privacy of your home or wherever you so desire. The key lies in making sure that you only do business with an established and legitimate company which has been licensed offshore to give US players a safe and enjoyable, dependable and exciting Internet gambling experience.