Pennsylvania Online Poker & Gambling See Rise in 2021

The WSOP in PA state

According to industry watchdogs Pokerfuse and PokerNewsDaily, the online poker and casino gambling scene in Pennsylvania is booming, exceeding $100 million in combined revenue last month.

Most of that was online slots and table games, but poker revenue has cracked $2.5 million in four separate months in 2021. Pennsylvania poker fans can currently play online at these regulated poker sites:

• WSOP PA
• PokerStars PA
• BetMGM Poker PA
• Borgata Poker PA

The latter two have merged to share their playerpool, and use the PartyPoker software platform. They’ve been taking some of the market share from leader PokerStars.

World Series of Poker PA

The keystone state saw its own ringfenced World Series of Poker (WSOP) Online tournament run this month – the Pennsylvania Online Bracelet Series. Residents of PA faced off against each other within state borders.

8 total events ran from August 8 – 15 on the WSOP PA website, with an average buy-in of just under $1,000. Prizepools were slightly smaller than on the main WSOP website which combines players from Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware.

US poker has been complicated since Americans were first banned from playing online poker on ‘Black Friday’ in 2011. However it is slowly returning to many states, and many remain optimistic for the complete return of inter-state play across the USA.

Pennsylvania Online Gambling

Online gambling in PA was licensed by governor Tom Wolf in 2017. After delays due to the DOJ’s reversal on its stand on the Wire act, PokerStars PA finally launched in 2019, with BetMGM, Borgata and WSOP following in 2021. Source – https://pennsylvania-online-gambling.com/

Interest in online gambling in PA and across the world has been boosted by the coronavirus pandemic, when many were locked down and turned to the internet for entertainment.

Bills have also been passed in recent years to expand and make online casino gaming, sports betting, daily fantasy sports and online lotteries legal. The horse racing betting scene is particularly popular, with a number of ‘racinos’ opening across the state.

Tourists physically located in Penn state can also gamble online in PA without being a full-time resident, providing they are over 21 or 18 in the case of fantasy sports and lottery games.