At least a dozen more U.S. states could legalize sports betting in the coming year, and up to eight could have operational sports books ready to take wagers before the start of the 2019 football season, industry experts said at a conference on Thursday.
In addition to the five states where legal sports wagering is up and running, another four to eight will “probably be accepting bets by the coming football season,” Jake Williams, Sportradar Group’s vice-president of legal and regulatory affairs, said in an interview after a conference co-sponsored by the sports data provider.
The surge comes after the U.S. Supreme Court in a May ruling overturned a 1992 law that had barred it in most places, allowing states to legalize, regulate and tax sports bets.
Within 24 months, there could be a total of 24 states offering legal sports betting, Williams said.
Fans can now wager legally on sporting events in New Jersey, West Virginia and Mississippi, as well as Nevada and Delaware, which were grandfathered into the 1992 law banning the activity in the rest of the country.