The race to ramp up sports betting in New York could start with horse racing.
New York Sen. Joe Addabbo, D-Queens, filed a bill on Nov. 19 with two primary goals: allow the state’s new mobile sports betting operators to add fixed odds horse race betting to their offerings, and allow mobile sports betting kiosks at affiliate horse tracks, OTBs, and pro sports stadiums or arenas.
Possible affiliates include Resorts World Aqueduct Casino, a slots operator near Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens. The slots facility is one of three downstate casino sites being considered in New York, according to an Oct. 20, 2021 story in the New York Post.
“One thing we have a vision of is accessibility of mobile sports betting for New Yorkers,” Addabbo told Gaming Today this morning. “So, horse racing, stadiums, arenas, kiosks, OTBs, throughout the state … right now that’s not the case, and will not be the case but through horse racing and their bets.”
Mobile sports betting servers for the kiosks would be located at four upstate casinos, under current law. New York mobile sports betting is expected to launch via those servers before the 2022 Super Bowl.
Possible Next Steps In New York Sports Betting
Addabbo’s proposal could also be the foray into retail sports betting in downstate New York, where approval of three commercial casinos has been on the back burner for years. State regulators began seeking proposals to expand casino gaming downstate last month with a deadline for proposals set for Dec. 10, 2021. The bid process would come late.
It’s uncertain, however, whether Addabbo’s bill will see action in Albany this year.
The New York Senate Rules Committee hasn’t assigned the bill to another committee for review yet, although that could happen soon. Addabbo says there is still time.
The Senator told Gaming Today this morning that he sees the bill as a “next step” in the discussion of the future of New York mobile sports betting.
“The discussion of the final language hopefully is in the April (2022) state budget,” he said.
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