which us states have legalized online poker

Examples of such federal laws include PASPA (The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act), UIGEA (The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006) and The Wire Act (The Interstate Wire Act of 1961). Federal laws set the overall picture nationwide, preventing any specific state from making their own regulations regarding legal gambling. While legal online betting is on the rise in the US, there are both federal and state laws that need to be taken into consideration when discussing sports betting and other legal forms of gambling. In 2019 however, the Department of Justice sought to change things once again with its pre-2011 interpretation of the Wire Act which created complications for certain players dealing with legal online betting processes. The legal sports betting landscape changed drastically due to a 2018 Supreme Court decision that removed federal prohibitions on legal sports betting nationwide this led to legal sports betting taking off in states such as Nevada, Delaware, New Jersey, Mississippi and Pennsylvania among others. Just recently in 2021, Michigan's legal online gambling market also launched with legal sports betting platforms along with legal online poker as well as gambling.

This trend continued in Pennsylvania in 2017 and West Virginia adopted soon after. In 2011, New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware were some of the first to launch legal online casino games, poker and other legal sports betting platforms, provided they fulfill all legal requirements like acquiring the proper license. This landmark decision opened doors for state governments to then move forward with legalizing additional forms of legal online gaming on their own terms. This process began back in 2011 when the US Department of Justice issued a legal opinion changing the way the federal government interprets the already existing Wire Act of 1961, which only applied to sports betting. Starting with legal online horse racing betting implemented across most states, some states have now gone further and legalized additional forms of legal online gambling including various casino games, poker, daily fantasy sports and lotteries. In recent years, legal online betting has gained significant traction in the US.

Which us states have legalized online poker