A judge in New York has ruled that fantasy sports are gambling, placing the industry in doubt for one of the biggest markets in the country. The Albany judge said that daily fantasy sports (DFS) should be illegal in the state. Acting Supreme Court Justice Gerald Connolly made the ruling on Friday in response to a lawsuit submitted by anti-gambling organizations, according to the Journal News. Connolly ruled that a law dating back to 2016 that allows DFS to operate is in violation of the gambling ban in the state constitution. The lawsuit was launched after the state’s lawmakers legalized…

New York Assemblyman Gary Pretlow says he was eight Democrats away from getting the online poker bill put to a vote last week at the end of the state’s legislative session. While admitting that “we didn’t really look at it” in the final weeks as New York online poker took a back seat to a more urgent sports betting bill that also didn’t pass, Pretlow attested that he had a commitment from 68 Democrats that they would support A 5250. Officially, the bill finished with 51 Assembly members signed on as supporters, including 47 Democrats and four Republicans. Another assertion…

With Assembly Member Gary Pretlow’s latest sports betting bill referred to the Assembly’s Racing and Wagering Committee in the New York State last week, lawmakers are up against a short clock to make sports betting legal in New York. The legislature adjourns June 20, leaving seven business days to make NY sports betting legal before having to wait until 2019. Pretlow (D-District 89) officially introduced his bill, A11144, last Friday and as yet, no formal action has taken place in the Racing and Wagering Committee, of which he is the chairman. According to Pretlow’s office, the bill does not yet…

Online poker in New York is turning into the legislative version of Robert Louis Stevenson’s literary masterpiece, the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. After a couple of close calls in each of the last two years, Albany lawmakers don’t seem to know if they’re coming or going in 2018. And depending on who you ask, online poker efforts have either taken a step forward or a step backward in 2018. On the one hand you have first-term Assemblyman Clyde Vanel, who appears to be spearheading the current online poker effort in the Assembly. “The budget effort didn’t…

New York’s online poker efforts could be getting a serious shot in the arm thanks to growing support in the one legislative chamber it has historically struggled in. Per OnlinePokerReport, the Assembly version of the online poker pitch, A 5250, could soon quadruple its number of sponsors, which would bode well for its chances there. The New York State Senate has, on more than one occasion, passed an online poker bill. The Senate bill most recently cleared a committee vote in January. The man spearheading the bill in the Senate, Republican State Senator John Bonacic, expects the measure to clear…

New York State Senator John Bonacic has introduced a sports betting bill in the state, in anticipation of potential wider legalisation of such activities in the US. At present, Nevada is the only state in which punters can legally place a bet on sporting events, under the laws set out by the federal 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). PASPA makes it unlawful for government entities to sponsor, operate, advertise, promote, licence or authorise betting schemes based on games played by either amateur or professional athletes. However, the state of New Jersey is heading up an effort to…