New York Will Take Raffle Sales Online

A new state law, signed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, will allow New Yorkers to purchase raffle tickets online. Many of the raffles are held by charities, where half of the prize pool goes to the charity and the other half goes to the raffle winner.

Legalized online raffles are giving New Yorkers a way to gamble online.

Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Charitable Gaming Act into law in December, which authorizes online raffle ticket sales, according to Online Poker Report.

Under the new law, charities will find it easier to hold raffles. In many of the raffles, referred to as 50/50s, half of the money in the pool goes to the charitable organization holding the raffle, and the other half goes to the raffle winner.

“No matter how you slice it, it’s clearly a form of gambling,” says Online Poker Report.

These types of raffles, common throughout the U.S. and Canada, often at professional sports events, can shell out thousands of dollars to winners. In the past, tickets had to be purchased in person, but that will no longer be necessary under the new law. The NHL’s Buffalo Sabres foundation led the push for online raffle sales.

The new law takes effect in mid 2018, when charities can advertise raffles online and sell tickets online, which can be purchased via debit or credit card.

According to Online Poker Report, the New York State Gaming Commission has yet to work out issues of how online raffles will enforce age or location requirements for online ticket sales.

Recent Articles

History Playbook

On This Day In Sports History

On May 25, 1935, Ohio State sophomore Jesse Owens delivered arguably the greatest 45 minutes in sports history at the Big Ten track meet in Ann Arbor. Owens broke three world records and tied a fourth, setting new marks in the long jump (26′81/4"), the 220-yard dash (20.3 seconds), and the 220-yard low hurdles (22.6 seconds), while equaling the 100-yard dash world record (9.4 seconds). Despite his individual brilliance, Michigan narrowly edged out Ohio State for the team title, 48 to 43.5.

On This Day In Sports History

On May 24, 1918, Cleveland outlasted the Yankees 3-2 in a 19-inning marathon at the Polo Grounds. Stan Coveleski pitched a remarkable complete-game victory, but the hero of the day was Joe Wood. Having converted from a pitcher to an outfielder after his arm "went dead," Wood launched a game-winning solo homer into the left-field bleachers—his second home run of the afternoon—to finally seal the win for Cleveland.