Gamblers were able to bet — legally — outside of Nevada for the 1st time this Super Bowl

(Image credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

published 4 February 2019

Gamblers wanting to place their bets on the Super Bowl this year didn't have to head to Nevada.

Last May, the Supreme Court struck down the 1992 federal law prohibiting sports betting in states other than Nevada, and seven states quickly lifted the ban: Delaware, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. It's been a success so far in New Jersey, where by the end of December, $1.25 billion in sports bets had been handled.

At the FanDuel Sportsbook in New Jersey, 40 tellers were on hand to take bets on Sunday. At the start of the Super Bowl, more than 80 percent of the money wagered there was on the New England Patriots, Reuters reports, and on Monday morning, most states should have an idea of how much was gambled on the game. Gambler Mike Yang told Reuters he used to be more of a "hard-core" better, using a bookie, and he's glad betting is now legal. He feels it's much safer, and he can get his money from a cashier once the game is over. "Now, it's just a fun thing for me," Yang said.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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