Pennsylvania
What is available in Pennsylvania?
PA online gambling regulations allow for a wide variety of new ways to gamble online including an online lottery. For the purposes of PA licensing, existing brick and mortar PA casinos partnered with online gambling software providers to offer online slots and table games as part of the online casino as well as online poker. A separate license allows casinos to offer online sports betting.
| Operator | When Opened | PA Partner | Products | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | November 2019 | Meadows Casino | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| Fanduel | March 2019 | Valley Forge | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| PlaySugarHouse | May 2019 | Rivers Casino | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| BetRivers | June 2019 | Rivers Casino | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| Hollywood Casino | July 2019 | Penn National | Casino | Review |
| Unibet | November 2019 | Mohegan Sun | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| Parx | June 2019 | Parx Casino | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| PokerStars | November 2019 | MountAiry | Poker, Casino, Sportsbook (FoxBet) | Review |
| BetAmerica | December 2019 | Presque Isle Downs | Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
| PA iLottery | May 2018 | N/A | Instant Games, Ticket Purchase | Review |
| Borgata | March 2020 | Rivers Casino | Poker, Casino, Sportsbook | Review |
The PA online gambling market is still evolving so expect the list of operators to continue to expand, especially in areas such as online poker.
Online Sports betting in PA
Sports betting has exploded on the scene since the United States Supreme Court opened up markets with a landmark decision in 2018. With PA passing a conditional online sports betting bill before that decision, sports betting was able to quickly establish itself in the state.
Now there are a handful or sportsbooks available in PA, with many offering betting lines on all major sports and even some popular and obscure international sports. About the only thing you can’t bet on in PA is eSports, high school and other amateur sports. In addition to a traditional sportsbook, most online sportsbooks offer live betting.
Most of the online sportsbooks are tied to the brick and mortar counterparts, often available through a partner’s casino. Nationwide brands such as DraftKings and FanDuel or being joined by PA-branded casinos such as Hollywood Casino and a casino from Parx.
Online Poker in PA
Online Poker was slow to go live in Pennsylvania, but in late 2019, PokerStars became the first online casino to offer games to players.
And since then, it’s all been PokerStars, although more online poker brands are expected to come into 2021. In fact, a second online poker room came to the state when Borgata and BetMGM (both using the partypoker software) went live in March 2021. Although the number of online poker rooms may be minimal now, PokerStars and partypoker are among biggest online poker brand in the world with a long-standing reputation in the poker world.
At this time, players in PA are only allowed to play against other players in the state. This means that players can not play with players in other states (although this could happen over the next year or two) or from the global poker pool, which will not happen anytime soon, if ever. Fortunately, with the population of Pennsylvania around 13 million, there are more than enough people in the state to sustain a few poker rooms.
Online Casinos In PA
For licensing purposes, casinos are separate from online poker rooms because players are effectively playing against the house. While online poker has not been as widely adopted in PA, most PA online casinos are offering or are intending to offer some form of an online casino.
Online casinos in the state are separated according to table games and slot games, which each taxed at a different rate. When Pennsylvania passed online gambling there was significant pushback from casinos on taxes, but that ultimately has not stopped many casinos in the state from moving forward. Unlike online poker in PA, if you are looking for choices, you got it, with many casinos already launching games.
Although game selection varies according to casino, expect to find a few dozen slot games at most casinos with a handful of table games such as blackjack. Because online casinos are in its infancy, new games are frequently being added to newer casinos.
Other Online Gambling
Apart from online poker, online casinos and online sports betting, Pennsylvania also offers a version of the lottery online through the PA iLottery. Dozens of “instant” games are available in the PA online lottery with a variety of types of games including….
The games in the PA iLottery are popular due to their simplicity and engagement factor. Although they don’t offer players the robust games of many online casinos, some of them could be mistaken for more basic online games.
More recently, the PA Online Lottery has allowed the purchasing of traditional draw game tickets online, meaning players can now buy lottery tickets for games like Powerball, MegaMillions and Cash4Life.
Players can take advantage of a New Player bonus as well as a $5 No Deposit offer, allowing you to try the games without risking any of your own funds.
A History of PA Online Gambling
The first form of legalized gambling in Pennsylvania was through horse racing with the first track opening at the Meadows Racetrack in 1963.
The PA state lottery was established in 1971 as a way to aid senior citizens in their property tax payments and to prevent illegal online gambling. After a handful of unsuccessful attempts, it wasn’t until 2004 that the state brought casino gambling to the state through the Pennsylvania Racehorse Development and Gaming Act, eventually leading the state to become one of the biggest in terms of revenue besides Nevada.
With many Pennsylvanians gambling offshore, Pennsylvania made history by becoming the 4th state to bring widespread online gambling to the state to become regulated. A landmark bill was signed by Governor Tom Wolfe in October 2017, which greatly expanded gambling by introducing mini-casinos, truck-stop machines and sports betting. Perhaps most notably, the bill included a comprehensive online gambling bill that included an online lottery, online poker, online casinos and an online sportsbook.
All Online gambling in Pennsylvania is controlled by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
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