Delaware

Delaware made history when it comes to sports betting as they became the first state outside of Nevada to legalize it back in 2018. However, it wasn’t until January 3, 2024, that sports betting launched in mobile form, as for the five years prior, bettors were limited to strictly retail betting.

Whether in a retail setting or online, Delaware sports bettors can wager on both professional and collegiate sports. The only stipulation regarding the NCAA is that bettors cannot wager on colleges located within the state.

Outside of betting on sports like football and basketball, residents can also wager on horse racing. The ability to use daily fantasy sports apps is also legal in the state and was allowed far before mobile betting was offered.

Online sports betting in The First State

Back in 2018, when PASPA was overturned by the US Supreme Court, the first state to jump on the opportunity to legalize sports betting was Delaware. In fact, the state did not need to pass any bills to do so, as back in 2009, the state passed HB 100, which allowed sports betting through the state’s lottery.

The state claimed they had a parlay product that was exempt from PASPA and had been around since 1976, in which case they should be able to expand their betting operations. Despite this claim, the state was not allowed to expand operations despite the bill being passed, so when PASPA was overturned, DE argued they already had the legislation in place to open sports betting to their residents.

Ever since sports betting was legalized in DE, the state has been in an exclusive contract with 888 Holdings, which owns William Hill. While betting was legal, it was only available through three retail locations, as many regulators in the state remained against the idea of fully expanding sports betting.

The state’s contract with 888 Holdings did come to an end in 2023, and after negotiations, DE would enter into a new contract agreement with Rush Street Interactive, who own and operate the BetRivers Sportsbook. With the signing of this new exclusive contract, bettors in Delaware finally got mobile betting through the BetRivers mobile app on January 3, 2024.

Each state operates differently regarding licenses and allowed operators, but most states that legalize sports betting usually offer a multitude of online betting apps. Due to the structuring of the state’s sports betting bill, though, BetRivers will be the only mobile app available for the foreseeable future.

All legal DE sports betting apps in 2024:

Sports betting & gambling legislation in DE

With sports betting now available in both retail and mobile formats, the state has needed to implement a few more restrictions for bettors. All of these restrictions are enforced by the Delaware State Lottery Office.

DE residents must be at least 21 years old to place a legal sports wager. However, they must be at least 18 years old to partake in daily fantasy sports. A mobile betting account on the BetRivers Sportsbook can be created anywhere within the state lines of DE, so remote registration is available.

It is important to note that even with that, bettors must be within those state lines to play a legal wager in the state. All bettors in the state are subject to a tax rate of either 2.2% or 6.6% on their winnings, and that number will depend on their income. Regardless of income, all winnings over $5,000 are taxed at 24%.

Outside of sports betting, Delaware does offer some additional gambling markets to residents in the state. For example, both online casinos and online poker are fully available, and unsurprisingly, with who the governing body of gambling is, Delaware also offers a lottery.

Most recent updates from the DE sports betting scene

• April 11, 2024: Rep. Franklin Cooke and Rep. William Bush have introduced HB 365, which was created to expand the mobile betting market in Delaware. The bill would allow casinos to partner with multiple online operators, which would allow for competition within the market.

• December 28, 2023: Mobile sports betting is now live in Delaware after five years of strictly retail betting allowed. BetRivers Sportsbook will become the first online operator to launch in the state on January 3, 2024.

• December 10, 2023: A Delaware House working group recommends expanding online sports betting to compete with the growing trend. Currently, Delaware is limited to land-based sports gambling, which contrasts with the significant portion of bets being placed online nationwide.

• November 21, 2023: Delaware sees an increase in sports betting activity, with $10.7 million wagered in October, up 4.9% from the previous year. However, the state's iGaming sector experienced a decline, with October's wagers reaching $30.5 million, an 18.7% drop compared to the same period last year. This decrease reflects a 19-month low for iGaming activity in Delaware.

In-person sports betting sites and locations

There are three racinos in Delaware that the Delaware Lottery regulates. Each of them has its own individual owners, but the lottery ensures each place offers the same betting menu. All online casino wagering through each location is now done through BetRivers, thanks to the new deal the state signed.

Each location has been prominent in the state long before sports betting came into the picture, as horse racing has been a big deal in Delaware for decades. Aside from sports betting, each location also has racebooks for residents who want to try betting on horses instead of sports.

Sports betting in neighboring states

Sports betting has been active online and in retail settings in states surrounding DE for quite some time. Atlantic City, New Jersey, is just one state over from Delaware, so if in-state bettors want to change their retail betting location, they are not far from an entire strip of casinos.

To learn more about what Delaware’s surrounding states have to offer in terms of mobile sportsbooks and other related services, click on the state in the box below.

Sports betting revenue impact on Delaware’s economy

Despite only having retail betting until recently, Delaware has habitually produced at least $100 million in sports betting revenue a year. While the state may not have a wide range of operators available, with how the tax system is set up, they typically do well regarding tax revenue. Sports betting revenues for operators in the state have a tax rate of 50% for both retail and online. The effective tax in the state comes in at 51.4%.

The way licensing works in Delaware is that all three state casinos share a yearly licensing fee of $4.5 million, but that license is not strictly for sports betting. The amount each casino pays is based on their share of the video lottery market. No one outside these three casinos can apply for an individual license or for the ability to join this joint license.

Depending on the season, the overall handle and revenue the state makes vary by month, which can be seen below, but the true question is how much more the state will be pulling in a month now that it offers mobile betting.

Delaware sports betting record months:

• Sports betting handle: November 2018 ($24,206,090)

• Revenue: November 2020 ($8,162,861)

• Tax income: November 2020 ($5,018,419)

DE sports betting revenue in 2024