On November 22nd, the online gambling giant Bovada announced that it would once again open it’s doors to players in the state of New York. Following a few years of turbulent changes in the operator’s policy regarding the state, it seems that the matter has reached its final resolution.
With this in mind, Bovada’s sister brands such as Slots.lv, Ignition Casino, and Café Casino have further benefited from their additional entrance on this large yet unexploited market.
New York Online Players at Bovada
The Thanksgiving holiday spirit for many New Yorkers came as an email, literally. To be more precise, the Bovada platform sent out emails to all its former players regarding their long-dormant player accounts. It provided information concerning their passwords, as well as added security and entertainment features.
Today, players are able to reactivate their accounts or create a new one if they are just getting into the online gambling action. Either way, such a move by Bovada has opened a much wider range of gambling destinations to a rather shaken portion of the U.S. player pool.
Why did Bovada Return to the Empire State?
Things are still far from clear as to the real reason behind such a move by this renowned U.S. brand. After all, New York has been on its list of banned countries for practically a year now, although its players had been restricted a while before their official prohibition.
No significant legislature changes within the state of New York can be identified as the cause for such a move. However, there are a few bills in preparation, expected to introduce a fresh approach to the matter of online gambling across sportsbooks, casinos, and poker rooms alike.
The Bovada-New York Love-Hate Relationship over the Years
This move by Bovada.lv is only the last of many over the years, starting from the initial troubles back when it was still recovering from the events of Black Friday. What started off as a range of restrictions for U.S. players soon turned into a full ban on new accounts. Take a look at some of the major events from Bovada’s complicated history with New York.
- 2014: This year marked the official end for New Yorkers’ real money poker action at Bovada, although they were provided an alternative only two years later, as the brand announced the selling of its poker platform to Ignition Casino.
- 2017: Bovada made a small comeback into the poker market before officially retracting all its services. Both New York and Maryland were prohibited U.S. states due to legal regulations, while Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware handled online poker with their own set of dedicated provisions, making Bovada redundant in these markets.
What Does This Mean for Online Gambling in New York?
Bovada returning to New York won’t have a huge effect on online gambling, although it’s no surprise that legalization in the U.S. has made big strides in the last couple of years and more states are trying to get a piece of the revenue it can bring. Only time will tell if Bovada actually stays in New York or not. Nonetheless, online players will once again be able to take advantage of the site’s variety of gameplay options.
