Legal Sports betting started in Deleware Tuesday and bet they did, over $322,000 in bets were wagered including the very first one of the day—a 10 dollar bet by Delaware’s Governor, John Carney, who risked 10 bucks on the Philadelphia Phillies, Delaware’s local team, to beat the Chicago Cubs.
"For us, it's really an enhancement of our tourism industry," Carney says. "It will attract a lot of visitors to our state, particularly at this time of year, during the summer, coming to our beautiful beaches south of here. They come here and stop at the casinos and do slot machine and table gaming. This will be another opportunity for them."
The Delaware Governor cashed in as the Phillies won 6-1.
And the rest of the state of Delaware is set to cash in as well as research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming projects the annual amount bet on sports in Delaware could be in the range of $350-million to $760-million once online wagering is implemented fully.