Make that more nervous. We have gotten dozens of calls and emails all wondering what this means for Internet gambling, several have viewed this as ‘the end’. However, this appears to be just another scare tactic from the U.S. government. This law, though it has a catchy title and a cool acronym that appear to give the it teeth, really appears that it will have little or no effect on the current state of money movement to and from Internet gambling houses.

The American Bankers Association, a trade group that “works to enhance the competitiveness of the nation’s banking industry” and represents over 95% of the country’s banks, clearly notes that the Final Rule on the UIGEA issued December 18, 2008 is aimed at companies and credit cards. Banks are now required to do more due diligence at the time of account opening to deny commercial entities that may be acting as Internet casinos access to the payments system. It also requires that policies and procedures be implemented to prevent all debit and credit card payments to Internet casinos. However, it does not require that checks, ACH payments, or wire transactions related to Internet gambling be monitored or blocked.

So this UIGEA is clearly aimed at financial institutions and gaming companies, not players. There is no mention specifically of the tried-and-true funding methods of Western Union or MoneyGram. Nor does it appears that recent inroads by some gaming companies into using ACH (where the player’s bank account is directly debited) as a form of funding will be stopped, or even looked at. As with most of the beliefs on Internet gambling in Washington, lawmakers once again are misguided here. They must think that the main source of funding a gambling account is via credit card. Or that 123sportsbook opens a bank account in the U.S. under the name 123sportsbook!

We recently polled a dozen very reputable gaming companies offshore. We were trying to find out what preparations they were making as the December 1 doomsday approaches. The most common response included the sentiments, “You know far more than we do about this one.” Bookmakers offshore have had to skirt the ever-evolving U.S. laws since they took their first bets from foreign soil, so most view this as just another ‘bump in the road’. Clearly the December 1st date is nothing like the final game of a winning ten-team parlay to offshore bookies. And, should the bump in the road become a roadblock, the offshore outfits will get creative. They always have and seem to have an uncanny knack of staying one (or more) step ahead of regulators and legislators.

Still, players have grown increasing anxious. The government propaganda machine is clearly in override as the date approaches. To that end, recent bank statements and emails sent to customers’ state, in one form or another, that restricted transactions related to unlawful Internet gambling are prohibited from being processed.

Check out what TD Bank put on this month’s statement to customers.

These declarations are required by the 2006 UIGEA. The strange thing is that they are showing upon personal bank accounts when the law clearly is aimed at the businesses involved in Internet gambling, not the players. We asked a local bank manager who said the credit/debit card portion of the UIGEA final rules forced banks to put out the misinformation to its customers. Banks must have policies and procedures that would prevent credit and debit card transactions from being made to Internet casinos for unlawful Internet gambling by any of its customers, including individuals. But, banks may rely on the existing policies and procedures established by the card networks and they do not have to create a separate process.

Thus, it may become even more difficult to use credit cards to fund your offshore gambling endeavors. However, as many players can attest, the use of credit cards at many Internet sites is not easy or reliable. Cards get rejected regularly, and the additional paperwork generated and rules enforced at offshore books and casinos make the use of Visa and MasterCard sketchy at best.

The bottom line for players is that if you use a credit or debit card and it has had issues in the past, forget it after December 1. We would also suggest not using a credit or debit card from any new bank accounts or avoiding cards all together if looking to ensure that your gambling remains under the radar.

Again, your bank is not required to block ACH, wire, or check payments related to unlawful Internet gambling to be in compliance with the Final Rule. So, if you choose to gamble online, knowing the pitfalls and the fact that the government does not want you playing, there is no need to worry about getting a check payout. If you want to ACH a deposit to your favorite book or poker room, go ahead. Looking to receive a bank wire? No problem.

As far as the operators? It is and will be business as usual. Money movement has been an issue for sometime offshore. Most Internet operators use systems that are not directly related to gaming. They are constantly looking for new funding and payout methods, knowing that if they can’t pay customers, they are out-of-business.

If you are an Internet gambler, there really is no reason to run from your offshore account. Or from your government. They are just trying to scare you. The UIGEA is just another law that has little success in living up to its name and actually enforces ‘illegal internet gambling’, whatever that is.

Since the Obama administration took office there have been more arrests, continued confiscation of bank accounts, ongoing investigations into Internet gambling companies and the impending implementation of the banks as the police of internet gambling.

Party Gaming founder Andrew Dikshit settled with the previous administration for $300 million and our eyes popped when reading the story. However, in July, Party Gaming itself settled with the US authorities for an additional $105 million, payable in installments through 2012! This settlement was in return for the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York ensuring the company and any of its subsidiaries will not be prosecuted for providing internet gambling services prior to UIGEA. In May, the U.S. government seized $24 million from bank accounts linked to Bodog. And, in August, Missouri officials got ex-BETonSPORTS kingpin Gary Kaplan to forfeit $43 million. Now, NY seeks $125 million form the latest arrest.

For several years now, the Feds in Maryland have been pursuing alleged money laundering in the internet gambling realm. So far in 2009, Maryland has seized $800,000 from Electracash and $365,366 from Atrium Financial Group. In addition, Account Services’ Douglas Rennick was indicted on charges of money laundering, bank fraud, and illegal gambling. If found guilty, Rennick faces a $1 million fine on the bank fraud charge, a $500,000 fine on the money laundering charge, and a $250,000 fine on the gambling charge. The indictment also seeks the forfeiture of at least approximately $565,908,288 (yes, that’s half a billion), which represents the amount of proceeds obtained as a result of the illegal gambling and bank fraud conspiracies. The list goes on and on. With a couple of million here and a few hundred thousand there, the government will have to hire extra accountants to count all of the money.

In 2006, Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which prohibited banks and credit card companies from transferring money for Internet gambling, in effect banning online gambling. However, the law left open the door for states to allow Internet gambling within the state’s boundaries, according to a Legislative Analyst opinion related to a bill last year. Still, the prohibitionist stance has taken hold in several states throughout the union. In April, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety released a list of 200 internet gambling sites that it was looking to ban in the state. Kentucky continues to fight over some gambling domains that they feel they can shut down. That case is now in the state Supreme Court.

Internet poker has been looked at by Indian tribes and states alike with California, via the loophole in the UIGEA, looking to come to the forefront. But, the effort many industry insiders thought was going to become law in California became muddled as everyone wanted a piece of the pie. The California bill has been declared dead at this point.

Really, the stance continued by this administration is simple. It’s all about the money; Making it and keeping it without any new political ramifications.

The voices for regulating and taxing Internet gambling all have one thing in common - taxation and regulation will yield big revenue for a government that is currently running deep in the red. But when you add up the ‘criminal proceeds’ gathered from the cases just this year – the prize is nearly $200 million. Add in another $300 million from the Party Gaming founder and the 2-year haul is nearly half a billion. That’s some serious cash and it leads to a surprising hypothesis. If the prohibitionist stance can rake in millions, why bother to head down the path of the rest of the Free World? Why not just keep investigating, busting and confiscating to fill the coffers? In fact, I wonder if right now there is talk amongst state and federal legislators to add a line item their budgets for proceeds from Internet gambling raids. Then, simply put enough manpower behind gathering the ‘criminal proceeds’ to meet the budget . . .

Why? Because the government is continuing its scare tactics, so that gamblers will not play offshore or with online bookies. And, what better way to spread the word of the evils of Internet gambling than to have a headline that includes the words multi-million dollar, Internet gambling and the coup de grace, organized crime.

Every report we found, from this one at NY1 to the Associated Press, loves to say a ‘half a billion dollar’ operation and feels the need to indentify Joe Fafone as a Gambino associate. The government claims to have already seized 3 million in assets and are looking for $125 million more from the defendants. Pretty good haul for New York’s coffers if it really pans out! The government has already gotten huge amounts of money from some of their strong arm tactics and recent arrests just this year – $34 million from ex-BETonSPORTS headman Gary Kaplan and $105 million from PartyGaming, the online poker and casino operator, who agreed in April to pay a penalty as part of a “non-prosecution agreement”. In addition, the government is not done shaking down foreign corporations as Sportingbet PLC believes that it will also reach a settlement with the U.S. DOJ this year.

After reviewing the document from the Queens D.A., which reads more like a feature article than a press release, it appears that the target of the investigation was Joe Fafone and an alleged sports betting credit operation that ran across several states here in the U.S. However, the D.A. appears to have blurred the lines between a long-standing credit operation and the post-up shop in Panama. In addition to identifying several credit shop websites, the press release also mentions industry giant BetOnline.com. The release states that the defendants were unlawfully operating a sports betting enterprise that stretched from Queens County to Nevada and from Rochester to Florida. However, BetOnline is a Panama corporation and does not offer credit to any players.

It also appears that the government has been following the Fafones for some time. A quick search provided “Operation Goodfellas” from 2002 where Joe Fafone and his father were linked to organized crime and an Internet betting operation in Costa Rica. So, it does not appear that the Panamanian sportsbook was being targeted, more like the guy the government claims to be the head man.

There is nothing new or unique about these kinds of indictments. There have been many similar charges and convictions in the past ten years. In 1999, a federal grand jury in Manhattan charged Jay Cohen, one of the owners of World Sports Exchange, with conspiracy to violate the Wire Wager Act and seven other counts. Ronnie Sacco, BetWWTS, Rick from Gold Medal and others have all been caught in the crosshairs of ambitious prosecutors looking to gain publicity in the news. All of these operations either stayed in business or been sold to reputable operators. And of course, the biggest splash ever made by U.S. officials, affecting over 70,000 bettors, was the 2006 arrest of BETonSPORTS CEO David Carruthers and subsequent meltdown of the company.

Though this is a significant arrest, does the government ever hear what they are saying? Queens District Attorney Richard Brown stated at the press conference, “In this case, I believe that we will make a significant dent in the illegal gambling nationwide.”

Really? I would wager that 95% of the players using this operation either 1) have another bookie, 2) have an Internet post-up account or 3) are looking for another bookie to play with . . . right now! The websites mentioned in the press release are all still operating and from what we have found out, will continue to operate; As will the thousands of other gambling sites that U.S. citizens can play at. And, as far as local bookies in NY and FL, I am sure that their services will be offered to any of Fafone’s alleged customers.

The bottom line is that this latest arrest is just another in a long series of government moves to stop something they can’t prevent. Illegal street bookies have been getting busted since the leather helmet days, yet every town nationwide has at least one. The largest U.S.-facing sportsbook was taken down and more sites have continued to pop up and take bets from U.S. players. Someday, we hope that the government realizes that gamblers are going to play, to bet, to wager. The only way for the government to get involved (read tax) other than the occasional arrest, is to regulate and tax the Internet industry and allow sports betting in U.S. land-based casinos. Maybe then, alleged ‘Mob connections’ won’t be booking a half a billion in wagers. But, there would also be no headlines to grab.

Ultimately, we wish all involved the best of luck in facing these charges. And, we expect this situation to play out very similar to the Jay Cohen/WSEX case, where the corporation located in Panama will continue to operate, while the alleged principles wade their way through the U.S. judicial system.

The most frequently asked question since the start of the football l season is, “Why is my book taking 5 days or up to a week or longer to get me a payout by check?”

We have gotten this question frequently but also have had an inordinate amount of players make the same inquiry regarding one of the top books – OSGA Elite-rated Bookmaker. Several Bookmaker players have been quite irate when they are told that their check will take 7-10 days to arrive – even via the more costly delivery option of FedEx, DHL or UPS. Obviously, these players have not requested a payout for some time from any book offshore. Bookmaker and MANY other books have been using similar time frames for check payouts for over a year. At least Bookmaker is very up-front about their check times and do not try to deceive the customer in any way. In fact, here at OSGA we use the 7-10 day time period as the benchmark for whether or not a book is paying fast via check. Less than a week is great and more than 10 days is a bit long. As far as check payouts, we have heard very positive feedback on both Heritage and BetJamaica where checks have arrived within a day or two.

Our Advice: Relax. With Bookmaker or any solid shop, these checks are like money in the bank. In addition, from both first hand knowledge and customer feedback, the checks from Bookmaker are like clockwork – ask for one on a Monday and have it in your hands by the middle of the following week.

Bottom Line: If you are playing with a reputable outfit, do not sweat the wait time for a check. Players may be tempted to jump ship for a book that promises a check in 72 hours. But with the ever-evolving payment processing system, there is not a single sportsbooks that can guarantee payout times – for any method.

We also have seen this question over and over again. “Who is the fastest paying?”

We usually respond with something smart – like “What day is it?”, as the payout situation is always changing. Reports indicate that YouWager is one of the fastest with Western Union payouts – generally getting them to player the next day, if request by noon the previous day. BetPhoenix does not have WU as an option right now but their MoneyGram payouts are also within a 24 hour window, many can be done same day. The typical time frame is 72 hours, most top books can guarantee a control number within 2 days of request.

Our Advice: Wait until after the payout crunch time on Monday if you do not want to become frustrated.

Bottom Line: Reputable sportsbooks want nothing more than to pay players quickly. Have some patience, as limits are in place with WU, Moneygram and checks. If your book imposes limits, they are generally being dictated by the third party processor. And, as in the response above, if you are with a top book, the person-to-person transaction is like money in the bank.

Finally, we have had several inquiries about using gift cards or re-loadable credit cards to fund an account.

These cards are becoming very popular because 1) they work and 2) they are easy to reload. Keep in mind that sportsbooks treat these deposits as credit card transactions so bonuses may be smaller and you will most likely have to fill out forms, as with any credit card transaction.

Our Advice: Re-loadable cards are a great method when they go through. Test out any new cards BEFORE you load it up with a bunch of money. AND, (very important) do not shred the card after you are done using it, while you are still playing. You may need to fax in the front and back of the card, just like with any Visa or MasterCard deposits.

Bottom Line: The re-loadable cards are growing more popular as they appear to be very effective. However, payouts can not be issued back to these types of cards, so be prepared for forms and potential delays due to getting the payout via another method.

Check back here frequently, as moving money to and from Internet gambling sites is in violation of the UIGEA. This means that until that law is repealed or changed, the payout situation and deposit method are going to be constantly in a stat of flux. If you play somewhere that has given you a fast payout, please post it in the comments below.

That’s right, the games are varied in nature. There are the Parlay Cards and Teaser Cards. Parlay Cards will be limited to $2-$100 bets, but the state will also take ‘off the board’ parlays with a $5 minimum and a $3000 max wager. ‘Off the board’ bets use updated lines from the electronic tote board, as opposed to the pre-printed parlay cards, but offer slightly lower payouts. The different types of cards resemble the ones that I saw all throughout my youth, but they all have ½-point spreads – there will be no pushes in Delaware. The Parlay Cards are just like any other and the two Teaser Cards are for either a point differential of 5-7 points or 9-11 points (Super Teaser). Both teaser cards are quite interesting because the points teased are not the same on each game or each card (the Teaser Card uses 12 points total and the Super Teaser , 20 points total). For example: in the Teaser Card for last night’s game (Steelers -6.5, again, there can be no even spreads), the Steelers were teased down to -1.5 (5 points) and the Titans were moved to +13.5 (7 points). The Dolphins/Falcons game is teased at an even 6 points on the Teaser Card but on the Super Teaser Card the Dolphins are given 9 points to leave them at +13.5 while the Falcons were granted 11 point to move their number to +6.5.

This is not the case on every game, but for certain games (especially those revolving around 3 or 7) it looks like the house is hedging a bit. After all, does anyone think that the Fins are going to lose by more than two touchdowns or that the Titans were going to get pasted last night? Obviously not Brandywine Gaming, who runs the backend lines and systmes forDelaware.

An example where the mighty number 3 comes into play reveals a bit more how Delaware is playing the game this time around. The line on the Parlay Card for the upcoming Rams/Seahawks snooze-fest is Seahawks -8.5. A six point teaser would bring the Seahawks margin of victory under the magic 3. The state apparently will have none of that type of advantage to the player and thus moved Seattle to -3.5 and the Redskins to +13.5 ( 7 points). In a bold showing, the Super Teaser will only allow the Chargers to be teased on Monday night down to -1.5, a mere 8 points. But, that does open the door a bit for Raiders bettors who are now getting 21.5 points on the Super Teaser card.

The bottom line is that each game must be looked at to play the teaser cards. It’s not as simple as putting in a 6 point teaser on the Internet and having every game calculated to 6 points right before your eyes. It also may give the Internet player an advantage seeing how the house is shading the line on a particular wager. One thing is for sure, the favorites are almost always going to be a bit pricier in Delaware.

We were particularly interested in the odds that the State was going to offer to gamblers. We figured to insure that the state would fill the coffers, players were looking at 5-1 or worse 3 team parlays. But the state can say they offer the highest parlay odds in the world – at least on three team parlays. The printed payout odds on the back of the card are 6.5 -1 for a 3-team parlay, 11-1 for a four teamer and 20-1 for five correct. The State offers all the way up to 10 team parlays, and these pay 800-1. Shocked, I knew immediately that the three team parlay were at very competitive odds. In fact, as-high-as-you-can-find odds. Offshore, only two outfits offer 6.5-1 on 3 teamers, BetOnline and Payoffs Plus. Interestingly, both used to offer 7-1 but those days are gone. Delaware even has very competitive odds the whole way up the board. Still, most offshore outfits will beat the odds offered by Delaware for 4, 5, 6 and even up to nine by a few bucks (12-1 on a 4 team parlay offshore vs, 11-1 in DE.). But if you play 10-team parlays, the Delaware Racinos would be heaven. No book on the Internet, comes close to 800-1 on a 10 teamer. I may just play one every week for two bucks…..at 800-1, as that is damn close to true odds. The highest we could find on this wager offshore is 642-1.

I once spoke with a book owner offshore after a weekend where the books went a bit sideways – some made a few bucks and some lost a few bucks. This particular owner sounded quite depressed on the phone. I said, “You sound down, from what I understand it was a pretty even weekend for everyone. Did you get creamed?” He replied in a montone voice – “10 team parlay” . . . But, Delaware does have a bit of a buffer. On the rules of the card it states that there is a maximum aggregate payout of $100,000 plus two times that handle for that week. By only offering parlays, I doubt that there will ever have to be some type of pari-mutuel payoff to players.

The teaser payouts in Delaware are also giving offshore books a run for the money. At 13 to 5 or +260 for a three-team 6-point teaser, those odds are really high. Offshore books generally pay anywhere from 3-2 to +180 for this same wager. And, they offer up to 12 team teasers in Delaware! And they pay out at 65-1! Again, as with parlays, the 4-8 team teaser can be gotten for a better price offshore. But, players who buy computer generated tickets looking to hit the big one, because that what this is all about, being a ‘lottery’, will have a shot at a pretty big payday on a similar type of longshot low money wager. And, I think the odds of hitting a 12-team teaser are better than hitting the daily number.

On Sunday, Delaware is giving it a go and so will we. I will be in front of the tote board in less than 48 hours. I will also be stepping outside the racino/sportsbook to provide live updates via our Facebook site. Feel free to check it out and get involved in the first legal sports betting east of the desert since the 70’s.…..perhaps a Facebooker will have a 10 teamer up their sleeve….

People that I tell this too say that I am a pessimist, that there will be other issues brought before the courts on gambling. The problem is that the court took a most narrow approach in applying their decision to the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. - PASPA. They could have ruled that single game betting in Delaware was permissible under PASPA. But instead, by deciding that only games that were previously offered can remain legal, they were saying that ANY expansion of sports betting violated PASPA.

New Jersey should forget their efforts. They plan to say that PASPA unfairly give four states and unfair advantage in offering sports betting and that is in violation of the U.S. Constitution. New Jersey Senator Lesniak was quoted saying, ” . . . this latest development does not deter us from challenging PAPSA as unconstitutional.” Perhaps I am over simplifying it, but the court’s ruling is obviously stating that ANY new sports gambling violates PASPA. Obviously, sports betting in New Jersey or any other state would be an expansion for sports betting, clearly flying in the face of current legal sentiment. In the sports betting world, PASPA is apparently now the Holy Grail.

We are hoping that the efforts of iMega and New Jersey are successful. But the odds of a federal ban on sports wagering being overturned dropped dramatically and are now considered by most to be a long shot, at best.

The proposed sports lottery was estimated to bring in at least $53 million annually for the state of Delaware. The state’s three casinos spent about $12 million upgrading their facilities in preparation of the launch. So instead of a legislated, regulated, taxed betting scheme, unlicensed bookmakers will still take in illegally bet dollars by the millions on any given Sunday. I would imagine that bookies in Philadelphia and Maryland were doing a jig on Monday afternoon. I was surprised that ‘South Philly Sammy’ was not at the hearing.

The NFL acknowledged to us back at the hearings in Dover that they know that illegal gaming occurs on their sport. But they do not want to see the proliferation gaming on their brands. Really what they did not want was for Delaware to win. What if the state’s revenue projections were low and the tiny state earned $100 million? Then every state would be lining up with Lesniak and iMega to get on board the gravy train. And that would certainly be the proliferation of sports gambling.

The NFL tired to hammer the ppoint that the expansion of gambling will hurt the integrity of the game. Certainly, they could not be talking about the small amount of wagers that Delaware might take in. However, they are worried about 50 states worth of bets. Still, it’s been explained many times, that legal betting acts as a watchdog for the leagues and sports in general.

Europe takes a different approach. Gambling is done on every major and minor soccer game played. BWIN, a gaming giant in Europe, is putting together a package worth $161.8 million to acquire Newcastle United F.C, one of the most fervently supported football clubs in the UK. They already have sponsorships with top soccer clubs including AC Milan and Real Madrid.

Basically, the NFL needs to get a cut of the pie. Had Delaware offered the NFL $20 million a year for the ‘right’ to bet on their games, do you think the NFL would have fired up the lawsuit wagon? Of if Delaware paid a sponsorship to have the state crest on the uniforms of the teams, do you think that the proliferation of gambling would be such a bad thing?

But barring such a deal (which again will not happen in my lifetime), with the latest case-law now in the books, any future sports gambling in the U.S. is going to have an impossible hill to climb.