Therefore, gambling laws can differ greatly between states. Active Federal Laws And Regulations In The United States That Affect Online Gambling. The United States maintains several significant federal gambling laws that greatly affect how gambling is regulated and permitted throughout the nation. Nov 08, 2019 The Interactive Gambling Act of 2001 applies to all online gaming operators, no matter if they are located on the territory of the country or are offshore ones, regardless of the venue's ownership. As a matter of fact, the IGA is mostly aimed at protecting the residents of Australia from the potentially harmful effects of web-based gambling. In April 2013, the first legal online gambling site in the United States went live in Nevada. It was an online poker room called Ultimate Poker. By November, online poker and online casinos went live in Delaware and New Jersey. In 2017, Pennsylvania became the fourth and largest state to pass legislation regulating online gambling. Both online casinos and an online poker room launched in 2019.

Is online gambling legal in PA?

On Oct. 26, 2017. Gov. Tom Wolf signed H 271 into law, enacting widespread gambling expansion that extends beyond just PA online casinos.

Here is a look at exactly what the law authorizes:

Online poker
Online casino games (table games and slots)
Sports betting, both retail and online
Online lottery
Daily fantasy sports
Tablet gaming in certain areas at authorized airports
Video gambling terminals (VGTs) at qualified truck stops
Mini-casinos

The law allowed the state to regulate and legalize these activities, but the law does not mean that every online casino site or sports betting app is suddenly legal in Pennsylvania. Only sites vetted, approved, and overseen by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) are legal.

All of the legal real-money gambling sites are very clearly tied to a land-based casino in the state. For example, FanDuel Sportsbook works in tandem with Valley Forge and BetRivers is the brand of the two Rivers Casinos in the state.

Online casinos in Pennsylvania

Legal online casinos in Pennsylvania launched in July 2019. After starting with three sites, the industry is starting to grow at a slightly faster clip. The state awarded 10 casinos interactive gaming licenses. Additionally, the PGCB is currently considering allowing MGM Resorts and Golden Nugget NJ to operate in PA.

This is the latest info on all of these online casino projects:

Casino	Launch	Bonus	Android app?	iOS access?
Unibet	Nov. 2019	$10 free	Yes	Yes	Play now!
PlaySugarHouse	July 2019	$250	Yes	Yes	Play now!
Hollywood (Penn National)	July 2019	$25 free	Yes	Yes	Play now!
PokerStars Casino	Nov. 2019	Yes	Yes
Parx	July 2019	Yes	No
Harrah's	2020	-	-
Valley Forge	2020	-	-
Presque Isle Downs	2020	-	-
Wind Creek	N/A	-	-
Stadium Park Philly Live! Casino	N/A	-	-
MGM Resorts	N/A	-	-
Golden Nugget NJ	N/A	-	-

PA sports bettings sites

Football season is underway, which means sportsbook operators are pushing to launch during sports bettings most lucrative season. Every casino in Pennsylvania, save for Lady Luck Nemacolin, has applied for a $10 million sports betting license.

Here is a look at where each operator is in the process:

Casino	Online Sportsbook	App?	Bonus
DraftKings (The Meadows)	Live as of Nov. 2019	Android and iOS	$25 free	Play now!
FOX Bet (Mount Airy)	Live as of Sept. 2019	Android and iOS	$20 free	Play now!
FanDuel Sportsbook PA (Valley Forge)	Live as of July 2019	Android and iOS	$500	Play now!
Unibet (Mohegan Sun Pocono)	Live as of Nov. 2019	Android and iOS via GeoGuard	$20 free	Play now!
PlaySugarHouse Sportsbook PA	Live as of May 2019	Android and iOS via GeoGuard	$250	Play now!
BetRivers Online Sportsbook	Live as of June 2019	Android and iOS via GeoGuard	$250	Play now!
Parx Casino Sportsbook	Live as of June 2019	Android
BetAmerica (Presque Isle Downs)	Live as of Dec. 2019	GeoGuard web access
Caesars Sport (Harrah's Philadelphia)	2020	Yes
Hollywood Casino at Penn National	2020	Yes
Wind Creek	2020	No
Live! Hotel & Casino	2020	No

Real-money gambling apps in PA

There are currently eight online sportsbooks, five online casinos, and one online poker option in Pennsylvania. Here is a look at when each of them launched:

05/28/2019
06/24/2019
06/25/2019
07/15/2019
07/15/2019
07/17/2019
07/25/2019
09/04/2019
11/04/2019
11/04/2019
11/12/2019
12/20/2019

5/28/2019: PlaySugarHouse.com Sportsbook
On Tuesday, May 28, PlaySugarHouse Pennsylvaniabegan testing on the first-ever PA online sportsbook. At launch, the site kicked off with several of the same elements present on its New Jersey site, including Jackpot Parlays, in-game betting, cash-out betting, and the same deposit bonus offer. The only thing missing? Access for iPhone users.
6/24/2019: Parx Online Sportsbook
SugarHouse had the market to itself for nearly a month, but Parx eventually doubled the number of online sportsbooks on June 24 when it began testing. The final product bore a strong resemblance to the Bet Builder function introduced at retail launch, making for a seamless transition for players going from brick and mortar to online. That is unless they had an iPhone.
6/25/2019: BetRivers Online Sportsbook
Just one day after Parx launched its online sportsbook, Rivers Casino Pittsburgh followed suit with testing on BetRivers. The two ended up receiving final approval at the same time, as BetRivers only needed two days of testing given its sister casino’s successful PlaySugarHouse launch.
7/15/2019: HollywoodCasino.com
After being the first casino to launch a retail sportsbook, Hollywood Casino got to notch a second “first” in its belt. On July 15, the Penn National and IGT product HollywoodCasino.comofficially began testing, bringing slots and table games to desktop and Android users.
7/15/2019: Parx Online Casino
Just hours after HollywoodCasino.com started taking customers, Parx Online Casino followed suit. The GAN-powered online casino product was the first site and, up to now, the only site with a blackjack game for players. Additionally, the site offered slots, roulette, and video poker.
7/17/2019: PlaySugarHouse Casino…and an Apple Solution
You would think being third to launch would be a big disadvantage. However, PlaySugarHouse online casino perhaps made the biggest splash of the three casinos because it brought both a new casino site and an answer for iPhone owners. In tandem with GeoComply’sGeoGuard app, SugarHouse offered iPhone users a chance to both bet on sports and

Is online gambling legal in PA?

Online casinos in Pennsylvania

PA sports bettings sites

Real-money gambling apps in PA

5/28/2019: PlaySugarHouse.com Sportsbook

6/24/2019: Parx Online Sportsbook

6/25/2019: BetRivers Online Sportsbook

7/15/2019: HollywoodCasino.com

7/15/2019: Parx Online Casino

7/17/2019: PlaySugarHouse Casino…and an Apple Solution

Online Casino Gambling Laws