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The Meadowlands Racetrack will begin offering sports betting in Mid-July, ahead of the upcoming NFL season. As such, this will be the first sports betting operation in the United States operating on the property of an NFL stadium and will make the activity available to those in the New York City area.
The Meadowlands is only a mere couple of miles outside NYC though it still takes upwards of 45 minutes to get there most days.
Jeff Gural, who manages the North Jersey track, tells The Associated Press that he plans to begin offering sports betting on July 15.
The development came as New York state adjourned its legislative session Wednesday without adopting a sports betting bill, leaving its vast population base available for the Meadowlands track, which Gural predicted will quickly become the state’s busiest sports betting outlet. Online sports betting will still only be available from internationally licensed websites, many of which have been in business for nearly 20 years now.
The sports betting operation at the Meadowlands will be run by Betfair/Paddy Power, based out of Ireland and considered the largest bookmaking business in the world.
“New York did me such a favor by not passing sports betting,” Gural said. “That leaves me the entirety of New York City, Long Island, Westchester County. There are 15 million people that live within 20 miles of the Meadowlands. They gave me a tremendous gift.”
So far, Monmouth Park racetrack in Oceanport, near the Jersey shore, and Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa are the only ones in New Jersey offering sports betting.
The Ocean Resort Casino will become the third on June 28 when it reopens on the Atlantic City Boardwalk.
New Jersey won a U.S. Supreme Court case in May clearing the way for all 50 states to legalize sports betting if they desire. Delaware was the first state to do so following the ruling; New Jersey was close behind.
While bets on the Giants and Jets will be permitted at the track, wagers on the state's college teams such as Rutgers and Seton Hall will not.
- Don Shapiro, Gamlbing911.com
