Delay in Delaware sports betting
Sports betting in Delaware will not start as scheduled on September 1.
Sports betting in Delaware will not start as scheduled on September 1. The Delaware Lottery Office tells WHYY the delay is due to the uncertainty about what actually is legal and what bets the state can offer. On Monday, the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Delaware’s plans for single game bets violated federal laws. That leaves Delaware with the only option of offering parlay or multiple game bets. State officials are still trying to determine what form those multiple bets could take. They hope to offer parlay sports bets starting one week later than planned, on the week of September 8th, which would still be in time for the start of the NFL season.
Dover Downs President Ed Sutor says his casino is ready to start taking sports bets, but admits that without getting the opinion from the court, there’s too much uncertainty to start sports betting next week. “Not knowing what we’re capabel of doing, we need some additional time, or at least the lottery does. So, we’ve been told that it will probably be during the week of the eighth.” The NFL season officially kicks off Thursday night, September 10th, with the Pittsburgh Steelers hosting the Tennessee Titans.
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