Now online gambling is playing catch-up to what is legal in the real world. You can go back into hiding now. A handful of lawmakers are still pushing to restore the original DOJ interpretation of the Wire Act to put the genie back in the bottle. Still, right now, it seems pro-online gaming advocates have momentum on their side – especially as states and private operators get accustomed to that new source of revenue. Online lotteries have been introduced in many states, and legislators in additional states are flirting with the idea. Since that fateful opinion, multiple states have launched online casinos, poker sites, and lotteries to get the ball rolling on the internet gaming. This decision gave the green light to online casinos and online poker sites in addition to online lotteries.
Additionally, tribal gaming commissions regulate casinos on tribal lands. There has been a significant amount of resistance to expanded gambling, but the trend is clear: online gambling is following the path first forged by real-world gaming. Interestingly, it was the government and not the private sector that first opened the door to online gambling in the United States. This opinion cleared the way for states to legalize online lotteries, casinos, and poker sites. Land-based gambling is well-established at this point in the US, with most states having multiple forms of gaming, whether it be brick-and-mortar casinos, lotteries, racetracks, sportsbooks, bingo halls, card rooms, or some combination of the above. The DOJ issued an opinion two years later that not only ruled in favor of online lotteries but also opined that the Wire Act applies only to sports betting.
This applies to Blackjack tables that are already full. Whether or not the Wire Act still applies to online sports betting is debatable. Still, multiple states have already proceeded with online betting on an intrastate basis, and more are considering following suit. Our US lottery guide provides qq insight into what games and formats are played in each state. Gambling is regulated in the United States by a combination of federal laws, state laws, and gaming compacts between states and gaming tribes. In 2009, officials from New York and Illinois wrote a letter to the Department of Justice asking if their plans to authorize the sale of online lottery tickets would violate the Federal Wire Act.