New Jersey Legal Sports Betting a Possibility, State Granted a Rehearing

New Jersey legal sports betting could become a reality in the state, as a US federal appeals court granted the Garden State’s request for a case rehearing on the matter.

In US gambling news, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals made an announcement that the majority of judges voted for a rehearing and vacated a 2-1 majority ruling made on August 25 in favor of sports leagues – including the NFL and the NCAA – that were opposed to New Jersey legal sports betting. This is a breakthrough for the state, which has been trying to introduce a legal sports betting market for several years now, but was never able to due to US gambling laws that prevented them from receiving the necessary approvals.

The state’s plans for New Jersey legal sports betting are for casinos and racetracks to offer betting on different kinds of sports games. This service is currently only legal in Nevada, and to have the service in the Garden State would be big New Jersey gambling news.

New Jersey legal sports betting would be big for the state

The state’s efforts to bring online sportsbooks in the US to New Jersey are spearheaded by Senator Raymond Lesniak. The rehearing has not been rescheduled yet, and Lesniak says that this new development in New Jersey legal sports betting is still “huge” even if it may take “a few months” for the rehearing to take place.

In a joint statement, New Jersey Congressmen Frank Pallone and Frank LoBiando said: “We are glad that the ruling – which robbed New Jersey of the opportunity to benefit from the billion-dollar sports betting industry – will be reconsidered and heard by the full court.”

“Not only do the citizens of New Jersey overwhelmingly support legalized sports betting and the revenue that would come to the state with it, but existing federal law picks winners and losers, and is unconstitutional and arbitrary. Several states can already operate sports betting, but New Jersey has been shut out despite the will of our citizens. We remain committed to seeing sports betting become legal in New Jersey, and this reconsideration is a positive and important development.”