Sports Betting May Become Legal in 80% of the States by 2024

The number of states that allow sports betting within the United States territory continues to grow.

By now, 18 states have made some kind of movement towards that end.

Seven states have already legalized the activity.

Sports betting generated $150 billion in wagers before the 2018 PASPA repeal.

That money, however, went to legal sports books located overseas.

New Jersey, which led the line by legalizing sports betting in June 2018, has already experienced some of the benefits.

As more states join this group, these numbers will only improve.

A total of 13 states have either passed sports betting laws or are in an advanced stage of negotiations.

By the end of 2019, around 35 states should have a sports betting bill.

According to the estimate by Gambling Compliance, roughly 50% of the U.S. population will have access to betting by 2020.

By 2024, Gambling Compliance predicts that around 80% of the states will have signed a sports betting bill into law.

Numbers Improved in 2018, Could Grow Exponentially in the Near Future

In six months, 2018 already saw a significant increase in the industry-wide revenue.

The number went from $261.3 million in 2017 to $430.2 million last year.

Again, New Jersey was the first one off the line in June.

This time around in 2019, a proper 12-month sample will be available.

That alone should be enough to boost the numbers.

Considering that even more states are set to contribute, the growth will be exponential.

According to Legal Sports Betting, 2019 already has generated $4.4 billion in handle and $259 million in revenue.

When it comes to taxes, sports books have already contributed with $60 million.

How much more money is available in this market?

Gambling Compliance initially projects a $7.9 billion revenue by 2024.

This prediction, of course, assumes that every state will be successful in establishing a market.

A Look at the Seven States

New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, West Virginia, Rhode Island and Delaware have joined Nevada as states that allow sports betting.

New Jersey tops the list with a tax revenue of $12.2 million.

The sports betting frenzy in the state led to it being able to overtake Nevada in handles as well.

In May, New Jersey generated $318.9 million in handles compared to Nevada’s $317.4 million.

Mobile betting is also a key player in this scenario.

The possibility of betting from a remote location obviously creates an even larger market.

But that’s not the only positive.

As some states lag behind in passing a sports betting legislator, residents may consider betting across the border.

Until now, it’s been mostly positives, but there have been some negatives as well.

While New Jersey has been the banner state, others have not been as successful.

Delaware is the only other state on course to meet its initial projections regarding handles and revenue.

Rhode Island and West Virginia lag significantly behind their original estimates.

Of course, there will be enough opportunities in the future to get closer to the projection.

Football season is just under two months away.

The future for the sports betting industry looks promising.