Not too long ago, if you wanted a legal sports bet in the USA you had to travel to Nevada. Times have changed though, and sports betting is spreading across the nation.
Led by a change in the law that allowed states to create and pass their own bills to grant legal sports betting, the wave has now firmly gripped the nation.
Starting with New Jersey, Delaware and Mississippi, the states allowing legal sports betting began to emerge.
As things stand now, we have 17 states where sports betting is legal, and that number will rise in 2020.
By the end of this year, it is likely that we will be past, or very close to passing, the number of 25. This means that more states would offer legal sports betting than those resisting the temptation and rejecting it.
What Will Happen in 2020 & 2021?
The figure of 17 right now will almost certainly change by the end of 2020. It is expected that we will be in the 20s by the time we hit the end of the year.
25 is certainly a possibility, but whatever we hit this year, more are expected to then follow off the conveyor belt.
This is exactly what it is like at the moment. We have states that are legal, those ready to go behind them, states with bills passed, those currently sitting and reading bills and those who are still at the discussion stage.
We have a conveyor belt of states at different stages, and each time we move we have other states jumping forward and filling the gaps that are left by those who have legalised betting.
Will Peer Pressure Bring Others on Board?
When Nevada was the only place to have a bet and Vegas was the gambling capital of the world, there was no pressure on any other state in the US to offer these services.
Now that has changed, and more are on board.
When we are in a position where more states offer legal betting than those that don’t, peer pressure could well kick in.
Will states be forced to offer their residents legalised sports betting, just because everyone else does?
There will be some resistance from the public to offer betting if this is the case. Many people like the thought of having a regular wager on sports, and if they see a lot of other people getting it while they can’t, that will cause unrest.
Those that have legal sports betting in place are in some way trend setters, and we could have a situation where others are pressed into following.
Bookmakers Staking Their Claim in a Big Way
Bookmakers with strong services in the UK have been staking their claim to many US states. Some have even gone as far as opening big US offices to run their operation from.
These bookmakers know what to do to attract new players into betting with them. This includes most online betting sites offering free bets and welcome offers to players at the start.
These will be available in the USA, so people can take advantage of them when betting on sport. The new NFL season is creeping closer, will the Carolina Panthers be a betting proposition without Cam Newton?
It is a real positive for the US betting industry to have such knowledgeable bookmakers bringing their service here. This will give a fantastic platform for customers to use if they want to place bets.
With so many potential new customers out there in every legal state, it is no surprise to see how popular the US market has already been.