Online sports betting ‘is coming soon’ to New York state, says Gov. Andrew Cuomo

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 18: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo shows off a mask that has both New York Yankees and New York Mets logos during an event at his office on March 18, 2021 in New York City. Cuomo spoke about the return of spectators to performing arts and sporting events, including a limited amount of fans attending baseball games at the start of the season. (Photo by Seth Wenig-Pool/Getty Images)

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday that the state will soon allow mobile sports betting services. The governor’s office also noted in this announcement that the move would help funding for schools and other services.

This is part of the fiscal year 2022 budget for New York, which was approved on Tuesday. Since it’s not in effect yet, the sports betting part of it isn’t either. However, that didn’t stop Cuomo’s office from estimating an additional $500 million in annual revenue from that part of the budget when he made his announcement on Twitter.

“The law allows the state to directly operate mobile sports betting, so the $500 million will go to the state rather than a lot of middlemen who operate mobile sports betting, which is what many other states have done,” Cuomo said during a press conference Wednesday, per Business Insider. “This is more like the state lottery, where we operate it and we get the resources.” Read more