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New York Sports Betting: The High Tax Rate Gamble Paid Off

Photos Shutterstock / Various Artists

Published: December 2, 2025

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The U.S. sports betting industry let out a collective groan when New York in 2021 approved a 51% tax rate on gross sports betting revenue. The industry already has low profit margins, and a tax hike arguably might prevent a sportsbook from making any profit at all.

Would the high tax rate scare off the major players? No, as it has turned out. In effect, New York called the industry’s bluff, and won.

The best NY online sports betting bonuses

New York Sports Betting Overview

Unlike many states, there is a significant lag between the launch of brick-and-mortar sports betting at casinos in 2019 and the later launch of mobile sportsbooks three years later in 2022.

Live Since:	July 16, 2019 (retail) and Jan. 8, 2022 (online)
Total Online Books:	8
Total Retail Books:	11 (four commercial and seven tribal Class III casinos)
Handle & Revenue:	$74.9 billion through August 2025, with $6.7 billion in gross gaming revenue. The state has collected $3.4 billion in tax revenue in that time, while no other state has yet reached the $1 billion mark.
Sports Betting Tax Rate:	51%
Legal Betting Age:	21+

Best Promos for New York Sportsbooks

FanDuel’s mobile sportsbook currently offers new customers a chance to win $300 in free bets if an initial $5 bet wins. New gamblers can sign up for each simultaneously, then play both sides of a traditional wager to ensure that one of the promotions pays off.

Fanatics new customers who use their sportsbook promo code can get their first bet covered each day for $100 for their first 10 days after signup. Any losing bets mean the bettor gets their stake back in FanCash.

Casual players can be content with just these two or three options, checking the point spreads on each to see if they can find a better price and/or better odds. The sites sometimes offer “risk-free bets” and “odds boosts,” though usually only for up to $5 or $10.

Serious gamblers would be wise to sign up for the other six mobile sportsbooks as well, spending time to find the optimal betting scenario for each game.

Full List of Online & Retail Sportsbooks in New York

There are currently eight online sportsbooks and 11 retail sportsbooks live in New York.

Online Sportsbooks and Official Launch Dates

Caesars – Jan. 8, 2022
DraftKings – Jan. 8, 2022
FanDuel – Jan. 8, 2022
Rush Street Interactive (BetRivers) – Jan. 8, 2022
BetMGM – Aug. 17, 2022
BallyBet – July 13, 2022
Fanatics – Aug. 16, 2023
ESPN Bet – Sept. 27, 2024

Retail Sportsbooks and Official Launch Dates

Rivers Resort & Casino – July 16, 2019
Tioga Downs Casino Resort – July 19, 2019
Turning Stone Resort Casino – Aug. 1, 2019
Point Place Casino – Aug. 1, 2019
del Lago Casino & Resort – Aug. 23, 2019
Yellow Brick Road Casino – Sept. 4, 2019
Resorts World Catskills – Sept. 5, 2019
Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino – Dec. 13, 2019
Seneca Allegany Casino & Hotel – Dec. 18, 2019
Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel – Dec. 27, 2019
Akwesasne Mohawk Casino Resort – Jan. 22, 2020

What You Can and Can’t Legally Bet on in New York

The nine New York sportsbooks offer extensive wagers on all major sports as well as dozens of lesser-known sports.

Like more than a dozen other states, New York does not permit wagering on college sporting events involving state universities. But unlike New Jersey, it does allow wagers on tournament games played at sites like Madison Square Garden in Manhattan or the Barclays Center in Brooklyn as long as a New York school is not involved.

On the other hand, New Yorkers can’t bet on awards shows like The Academy Awards or the Emmys is prohibited. The same is true for the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, which takes place at Coney Island in Brooklyn, as well as a ban on betting on the Heisman Trophy, NBA MVP, and other similar honors.

Official Sports Teams – Tons of Pro Sports Teams

The NHL’s New York Rangers, New York Islanders, and Buffalo Sabres; the NBA’s New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets; MLB’s New York Mets and New York Yankees; and the NFL’s Buffalo Bills all play their home games in the state of New York. The most popular choices for betting by New Yorkers – the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets – play their home games across the Hudson River in New Jersey.

There are 22 Division I men’s basketball teams in the state, but historically only St. John’s and Syracuse are nationally prominent.

Critiques on the New York Online Gambling Scene

The state’s mild compromise in setting the tax rate so high was that it limited licenses to only a maximum of nine sportsbooks (Resorts World Bet discontinued its operation in June 2025). That prevents a potential outside innovator from providing consumers with a fresh angle on sports wagering. But the existing sportsbooks ultimately have not offered significantly worse betting odds than they do in lower-tax states, at least for now.

Regarding the ban on betting on in-state college games, it has not had a major effect on sportsbook bottom lines on football, as only Syracuse competes in a major conference and that university has not been a top 10 program in more than 30 years.

The one significant loss for state sportsbooks is its inability to allow wagers on St. John’s men’s basketball, which reemerged as a national power in 2024-2025 and which has national championship aspirations in 2025-2026. Gamblers in the state are left to place wagers at illegal offshore operators instead.

Sports Betting in New York vs Neighboring States

New York’s eight active mobile sportsbooks are just a shade lower than in neighboring Pennsylvania with 11 and New Jersey with 14. Concerns that New York’s high tax rate would result in far worse odds offered to consumers have proved mostly unfounded, although there may be fewer amenities such as “free bets.”

The signup incentives in New York by FanDuel are the same as in New Jersey, but only one of Fanatics’ three separate signup offers is open to New Yorkers.

New York vs New Jersey and Pennsylvania – NY Has the Highest Betting Handle & Tax Rate

New York has had $74.9 million in betting handle through August 2025, outpacing runnerup and neighboring state New Jersey ($66 million). Pennsylvania, its other major neighbor, ranks fifth nationally at $40.2 million.

The 51% tax rate in New York and the state’s large population has helped New York at least triple any other state’s total sports betting tax collection. New Jersey’s rate had been just 13% for mobile wagers, though it rose to 19.75% as of June 2025. That’s still far lower than Pennsylvania’s rate of 36%.

The $98.8 million in sports betting tax collected in New York in September 2025 bolsters the likelihood that the state will clear the $1 billion mark by the end of the calendar year.

The Path to Legalizing Sports Betting in New York

The Upstate New York Gaming Economic Development Act of 2013 mainly focused on approval of up to four upstate New York casino licenses. While there wasn’t much fanfare at the time, it also included a provision that sports betting would become legal in New York if and when the federal government ever elected to cease its nearly nationwide ban on such activity.

That benefited the state when neighboring New Jersey won its U.S. Supreme Court case just five years later, opening the door for any state to authorize such gambling. Thanks to the 2013 law, New York already had that approval in place.

2013-2018: The Groundwork for Sports Betting Is Laid

June 6, 2013: The New York State Legislature approves the Upstate New York Economic Development Act, which is then signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo with a clause that allows for sports betting if the federal government limits are removed.

May 14, 2018: The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down a 1992 federal law that had granted Nevada a virtual monopoly on legal sports wagering.

2019-2022 Retail Betting Takes the First Lead, Mobile Betting Follows

July 16, 2019: New York State Assemblyman Gary Pretlow places the first legal bet at Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, risking $20 on the Seattle Mariners to win their baseball game that night against the Oakland Athletics.
April 19, 2021: Cuomo signs into law a provision to allow for mobile sports betting in the state.
Nov. 8, 2021: The New York State Gaming Commission approves betting licenses for nine operators.
Jan. 8, 2022: Four of the nine approved operators start accepting their first legal wagers.

2024-2025 New York Sports Betting Revenue Hits Record Numbers

Jan. 12, 2024: Gov. Kathy Hochul announces that the state generated a U.S. record $862 million in sports betting tax in 2023.
Jan. 14, 2025: The state announces that it is the first to collect $1 billion in sports betting tax in the previous year.

Thoughts on NY’s Betting Timeline: A Slow Start and High Taxes, But An Even Playing Field

The state cost itself untold millions in tax revenue by being so slow to launch an online sports betting product. But it has more than made up for it by getting the major sportsbook players to do business in the state in spite of a massive tax rate that is unmatched in any state that does not offer a single sportsbook a monopoly on gambling.

Revenue & Handle – The Empire State, Undefeated by Numbers

The total numbers generated by New York are the envy of the entire U.S. sports betting industry, and for good reason.

Total Handle to Date:	$74.9 billion through August 2025, with $6.7 billion in sportsbook gross revenue
Tax Revenue to Date:	The state has collected a staggering $3.4 billion in sports betting tax revenue in that span.
Breakdown of Online vs. Retail Share	New York City does not yet have any brick-and-mortar casinos, which is a contributing factor to the fact that the percentage of retail sportsbook revenue in the state is less than 1 percent of what is generated online.
YoY Growth Rates:	New York took in almost 20 percent more in betting handle in 2024 as it did in 2023. At just over $16 billion through August 2024 and with football season wagers still to be counted, the state is likely to set another national record for betting handle in 2025 – breaking its record of $22.6 billion in 2024.
Handle Milestones	In its first year of mobile sports betting in 2022, New York became the first state to record $10 billion in handle in a calendar year. In October 2023, the state became the first to take in $2 billion in wagers in a single month.

Official Sports Betting Partnerships

FanDuel is a partner of the Yankees, Nets, Bills, and Sabres. DraftKings is paired with the Rangers. Caesars teams with the Mets, Knicks, Bills, and Rangers, while BetMGM is a partner with the Knicks as well as the Rangers.

When it comes to sportsbook-to-sportsbook partnerships, the current list includes:

del Lago Casino x DraftKings
Tioga Downs x FanDuel
Turning Stone x Caesars
Akwesasne Mohawk Casino Resort x Stars Group
Turning Stone, Point Place, and Yellowbrick Road x Caesars

Licensing & Oversight – A Stricter State Gaming Commission Than Other States

All sports wagering in New York takes place under the watch of the New York State Gaming Commission, which also oversees horse racing, daily fantasy sports, and non-tribal casinos.

Most of the commission’s energy seems to be focused on managing horse racing and daily fantasy sports operators, the latter including sports betting leaders like FanDuel.

The commission is more conservative than agencies in other states, for example banning all “prop bets” on individual college players and not allowing for “futures” bets on who might win awards such as Most Valuable Player in any sports league.

Responsible Gaming – The Commission Is Known for Safe Gambling

The Gaming Commission has earned responsible gaming accreditation from the National Council on Problem Gambling, and it has a voluntary self-exclusion program for those who struggle with compulsive gambling: https://gaming.ny.gov/voluntary-self-exclusion

Confidential assistance is available at Call: 1-877-8-HOPENY (1-877-846-7369) or via text at HOPENY (467369). Additionally, the NYS Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) says it “provides resources to understand problem gambling and encourage meaningful conversations about addiction and prevention.”

New York Sports Betting Key Takeaways

Overall, New York sports bettors have a sufficient amount of operators to seek out favorable odds and promotions, and a national-best $1 billion or more annually in sports betting tax revenue is an even better deal for residents who don’t gamble at all.

Several professional sports teams to bet on
Pro sport franchise partnerships offer unique perks

High tax rate might push away operators
Loss of revenue on bets on St. John’s men’s basketball
No non-sports entertainment betting

Why Sports Betters Love New York

Few states have more professional sports teams to root for – and gamble on – than the Empire State does, including two NBA teams in New York City alone.
Pro sports franchises are eager to be partners with those teams, so wagering fans who attend sporting events can benefit from visits to places such as the Caesars Sports Lounge at Citi Field.

Why Placing Wagers Might Fall Short

There is a chance that one or more of the remaining eight operators will follow in the footsteps of Resorts World Bet this summer and eventually exit the high-tax market – a blow to consumers.
The massive hype surrounding the St. John’s men’s basketball team not only will mean a loss of tax revenue from the college ban, it could lead to casual fans finding illegal sites to bet instead.
Not allowing bets on non-sporting entertainment such as the Academy Awards means a loss of casual bettors who might otherwise follow up and try a sports bet or two as well.

Closing Thoughts on Sports Betting in New York – NY Residents Get the Last Laugh

New York lawmakers were visionary by including a clause in a 2013 casino bill that would set the stage for sports betting at whatever point the federal government decided to allow it. But it took those lawmakers and regulators about six months longer than rival New Jersey to launch the first sportsbooks – and at first, the only options were to visit an upstate sportsbook.

So for 2 1/2 years, resident gamblers who lived near the New Jersey border simply ventured into that state to make their bets – and provide New Jersey with the subsequent tax revenue. It was not unusual on a Saturday or Sunday football season morning to see walkers and bicycle riders stop halfway across the George Washington Bridge to make their wagers.

That’s because geolocation companies hired by the sportsook operators could detect crossing the state line into New Jersey.

But New York got the last laugh in the end, as that 51% tax rate did not prevent the biggest sportsbooks from settling down in New York after all. Residents have thus reaped a windfall.