Rhode Island Online Sports Betting Launched In Time For The NFL Season
Welcome to the party, Ocean State. As of today, online sports betting in Rhode Island is launched, and sports bettors can start making wagers in time for the start of the NFL season.
Rhode Island bettors were hoping to have mobile wagering available for the NFL season, and with its Wednesday launch it squeaked in by the skin of its teeth – The NFL Season kicks off Thursday night.
Word of the launch came down Tuesday evening. According to Providence Journal reporter Katherine Gregg, Twin River casino employees were told to anticipate the rollout of mobile sports betting on Wednesday.
Gregg posted the following update Wednesday morning:
At 12:30 PM, Rhode Island’s online and mobile sportsbooks appears to have gone live for registrations. At 3 PM online sports betting officially went live, according to the Providence Journal’s Patrick Anderson.
Overview of Rhode Island Sports Betting
The Rhode Island State Lottery and its supplier IGT offer sports betting in the state – at the state’s two casinos. The retail sportsbooks are powered by William Hill, with the bookmaker’s brand featuring prominently in all advertising.
With its mobile rollout, Rhode Island became the sixth state with mobile sports betting. However, Rhode Island isn’t fully mobile. A one-time visit to a RI casino is required to register an account in-person.
Judge Me By My Size Do You?
Rhode Island is the smallest state in the US. It’s also one of the least populated states in the nation. But don’t let its size fool you, especially when it comes to gambling.
Even though Massachusetts has three casinos and Connecticut has two, many residents in both states are closer to Twin River Casino in Lincoln, RI.
In 2015, the Northeast Gaming Research Project estimated 50% of Twin River’s revenue was coming from Massachusetts.
It also has a monopoly on sports betting in the region, and the addition of mobile will likely lead to residents from Connecticut, Massachusetts, and beyond to make the short car ride over the Rhode Island border to register an account and place bets before driving home.
So, even though Rhode Island’s population is just over one million, the state’s mobile sportsbooks will attract sports bettors from across the region, giving Rhode island an effective population of several million.
Quick History of Sports Betting in Rhode Island
Rhode Island legalized retail sports betting as part of its 2019 budget bill in June 2018. Less than six months later retail sportsbooks were up and running at the state’s two casinos: Twin River Lincoln and Twin River Tiverton.
The state passed a second sports betting law — legalizing mobile wagering — in March 2019. And once again, the state will launch roughly six months after the passage of the legislation.
Steve Ruddock is the content director for BettingUSA and the Editor-in-Chief of Gaming Law Review.
Steve has covered the legal and legislative developments in the US gambling sector for more than a decade for online and print publications.
