2020-2021: Legalization and Implementation They already had lots of casinos on tribal lands, and with so many stakeholders fighting over the details, they would have to wait for the full regulation to occur. This opened the door for states like Washington to open up their legal sports betting markets.

However, in 2018, in the infamous PASPA decision, the Supreme Court declared that this monopoly was illegal and invalidated it. This was because Nevada had a monopoly on the industry. The legalization and regulation of sports betting were actually not allowed for many years. 2018-2019: New Possibilities but Little Traction Let's take a look at how they got to where they are now. It took them a bit of time, a few years of debate, and waiting it out, but eventually they came around. Washington State finally got on the sports legalization bandwagon. There are several off-track betting locations in the state where bettors can visit to place a wager on a horse as well. Their only racetrack, Emerald Downs, is located in Auburn and offers live thoroughbred racing all spring and summer long. There are 35 tribal casinos in Washington, mainly located toward the western side of the state. Legal gambling avenues in Washington have always fallen into the following categories: tribal casinos, poker, horse racing, and the lotto. The tribe’s compact states that they will be funding the state’s social and educational programs in lieu of tax revenue. This is a good point, as the tribal casinos aren’t funneling any tax revenue into the state from sports betting. They were pushing for a mobile option to make sports betting more accessible in Washington.

Maverick Gaming, a corporation that owns several card rooms in the state, voiced their displeasure at the exclusivity of sports betting to tribal casinos. There will be no online gambling apps or mobile betting offered by Washington state. Senator Michael Baumgartner always expressed his interest and support to the legalization of sports betting, and now he has reached an agreement with the tribal casinos to be the sole licensees of sports betting in the state. Washington was the 21st state to legalize sports betting.

Supreme Court decided to lift the almost 30-year-old ban on sports betting under PASPA in 2018, governing officials have been slowly rolling out sports betting legislation and many waited to see how the first few states did revenue-wise before they took the plunge. Top Online Sportsbooks for Betting in Washington Legal Sports Betting in Washington

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