When the Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) that had outlawed sports betting across the country was unconstitutional, it opened the doors for each state to create its own sports betting laws. Since then, a healthy sports betting culture has reemerged in the United States. 

While not every state has opened its doors to online or in-person sports betting, the majority of the country has. These are exciting – and occasionally confusing – times for sports bettors. Exciting, because sports betting no longer has to involve a trip to Las Vegas or the use of sketchy, legally-grey bookmakers. And confusing because the laws can vary dramatically by state and there is now a multitude of online sportsbooks to choose from. 

Any betting guide for beginners will tell you that you should stick with one or two sports that you know best. Many bettors also prefer to focus on futures betting. These two factors combined can seriously limit the period in a year in which a bettor can place bets. If you only bet on the NFL, for example, your betting season only lasts from September to February.

Betting is also limited to game days. Of course, you can place bets days or weeks in advance. Once the bet is placed, though, what more is there to do except wait to see if it pays out? Only limited types of bets can be placed while a game takes place. For every other type of bet, there is no instant gratification. Waiting is always involved.

For bettors who prefer to have their gambling fun without waiting, online casinos are increasingly appearing to be a better option. This article will look at what the appeal of online casinos is for bettors, and why we’re seeing a bigger shift towards casino gaming from bettors now than in previous years. 

No waiting

Online casinos can provide bettors with more “on-demand” fun than betting does. The longest you’ll have to wait to play at an online casino is the amount of time that it takes to set up your account and have your first deposit processed. Even then, many online casinos will provide their new players with welcome bonuses, including free spins or deposit matching. With these, you can start playing almost immediately.

Players also don’t have to play only at certain times of the year. There is no “slot machine season” or “roulette semifinals”. Bettors can play casino games whenever they feel like it. For bettors who focus solely on one sport, playing casino games is a great way to get their wagering fix during the offseason, without having to try their hand at betting on sports they’re not familiar with.

Less work

Successful sports betting requires a lot of work from the bettor. You need to be constantly on top of all of the latest news, from reports and rumors to injury lists and trade deals.

Even if you only follow and bet on one team, you still need to have just as much knowledge of everyone that your preferred team is facing in order to make smart bets. In addition, you need to have the mathematical knowledge to work out which bets will pay out well versus those that aren’t worth the investment.

With online casino games, there is little to no work involved. Casino games are games of chance and there is very little a player can do to affect the outcome. Poker is, of course, the exception to this rule, as it does require an element of skill. For a sports bettor looking to relax a bit, playing the slots is a great way to bet without the effort.

Winning huge bets requires work and luck, and rarely happens for the average sports bettor. Winning a slot jackpot is also rare but at least it doesn’t require any hard work. The best jackpot games, especially the progressive jackpots, can have massive payouts. Progressive jackpots build as you play and while it’s always highly unlikely that you will win, the chance – and the slim possibility – is always there.

Shared platforms

The primary reason we’re now seeing more bettors choosing to play at online casinos is convenience. Most of the major sportsbooks have their own online casinos, while the biggest online casino brands have started their own sportsbooks. It’s remarkably easy to navigate from one to the other when they share the same platform or app.