UIGEA: Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act

Representative Jim Leach of Iowa introduced the Internet Gambling Prohibition and Gambling Enforcement Act on November 18th, 2005. The intent of this legislation was to target the payment processors used for illegal online gambling. Leach’s bill redefined terms of the 1961 Federal Wire Act including expanding the definition of bet or wager to include any game that is subject to chance. The purpose of this was to ensure the bill applied to online poker. The Internet Gambling Prohibition and Gambling Enforcement Act was approved by the House of Representatives on July 11th, 2006.

New Jersey Lawsuits against PASPA

In March 2009 New Jersey State Senator Raymond Lesniak funds his own lawsuit against PASPA. He claims that the federal law is unconstitutional as it discriminates against the 46 states that do not have sports betting legislature. The case is thrown out with the courts stating it must be brought on by New Jersey governor Chris Christie. New Jersey holds a non-binding referendum in November of 2011 where voters backed legalized sports betting by over 66%. On May 24th, 2012 governor Chris Christie announces plans to bring sports wagering to New Jersey race tracks and casinos. He anticipates resistance:

“We intend to go forward and allow sports gambling to happen, if someone wants to stop us, they’ll have to take action to stop us.”

He was correct. On August 7th, 2012 the NCAA, NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB file a lawsuit against New Jersey stating that their proposal violates PASPA. The state counters with the argument that PASPA itself violates the Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution which reserves all states any rights not explicitly granted to the federal government (which includes gambling regulation). The court rules against New Jersey agreeing with the leagues that their law violates PASPA.

Does PASPA repeal make sports betting legal?

The Supreme Court’s decision that PASPA is unconstitutional allows states to create their own sports betting legislation. This means it is up to each state to decide if they should legalize it. You can track each state’s legislative status as of December 2023 with our betting map. When a state passes the necessary laws licensed and regulated online sportsbooks will open. Americans from all 50 states are still able to safely bet on sports using offshore betting sites.

Our recommended US betting sites December 2023:

2011 DOJ Formal Legal Opinion

New York and Illinois wanted to use out-of-state payment processors in order to sell lottery tickets in-state. This practice violates the 1961 Federal Wire Act which prevents the transmission of betting information across state lines. On September 20th, 2011 the United States Department of Justice released a formal legal opinion narrowing the scope of the Wire Act. They believed that since the Act was an anti-racketeering law meant to prevent the mafia from profiting off match fixing it should only apply to sports betting.

“Interstate transmissions of wire communications that do not relate to a sporting event or contest fall outside the reach of the Wire Act. Because the proposed New York and Illinois lottery proposals do not involve wagering on sporting events or contests, the Wire Act does not prohibit them.”

This means that it is no longer illegal to transmit betting information across state lines as long as it does not pertain to a sports match. Many states immediately took advantage of this and implemented it in the sale of online lotteries.

Is it safe for Americans to bet on sports?

Yes. The 1961 Federal Wire Act and the Department of Justice’s 2011 and 2018 formal legal opinions specifically target individuals and organizations who accept bets on US soil from residents of different states. The Wire Act does not target Americans who place bets using offshore sportsbooks; as these betting sites are licensed and located in countries with legal online gambling. There has never been a federal law against using an offshore betting site. Americans are free to use them without any fear of getting in trouble.

Below is a list of some recommended American betting sites for December 2023:

Is it against the law to place a bet?

Congress made it clear that the Federal Wire Act specifically targeted the organizations who were accepting interstate bets and not the bettors who were placing them. During a debate in the House of Representatives, Congressman Emanuel Celler, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee at the time, confirmed this:

“This bill only gets after the bookmaker, the gambler who makes it his business to take bets or to lay off bets… It does not go after the causal gambler who bets $2 on a race. That type of transaction is not within the purvue of the statute.”

The Federal District Court further added that Americans who wager larger amounts and operate with a degree of sophistication are also not targets of the Federal Wire Act. The only thing that is illegal is to accept a bet from someone who is located in a different state. In short you cannot get in any trouble by placing a bet online.

Does the Federal Wire Act affect offshore betting sites?

Nope! The Federal Wire Act only prevents you from running your own illegal betting site on US soil and accepting wagers from customers in different states. Offshore sportsbooks are betting sites that are licensed and regulated by countries that have legal online gambling. There is no federal laws preventing Americans from using offshore sportsbooks. Many of these betting sites have been serving the US market for years and have flawless reputations.

Our recommended American betting sites for December 2023: