The state’s only online gaming platform isn’t going to offer online poker
Poker players in Delaware will temporarily be without an online platform. Rush Street Interactive (RSI) has replaced 888Holdings as the state’s online gaming operator, which has provided its product in Delaware since 2013.
Delaware’s iGaming laws allow for just a single operator, and RSI doesn’t currently offer an online poker product. The state’s agreement with RSI also includes online sports betting, which is set to launch this week.
Delaware was the first state to launch online gaming, with just over 1 million residents as part of a flourishing poker market that was possible through shared liquidity. 888Holdings pooled together with players in New Jersey and Nevada under the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement through the WSOP.com platform after partnering with the state’s horse racing tracks.
RSI currently offers sports betting and casino games on its platform but doesn’t provide online poker. However, the company purchased Phil Galfond’s Run It Once Poker in 2022, meaning the provider could enter the US poker market sometime in the future, which Delaware Lottery officials confirmed.
“Rush Street Interactive has announced previously that it is developing a poker platform that they are excited about sharing with players,”” declared Delaware Lottery director Helene Keeley to Card Player last August. “The Lottery and RSI are working together towards making poker available to Delaware patrons, though we’re not prepared to discuss a specific timeline at this stage.”
Delaware residents have enjoyed sports betting at the state’s three retail casinos since 2018, but mobile wagering wasn’t approved until 2023.
State regulators did not permit 888 to operate sports betting last year. After launching on January 5, state bettors still have some of the football season remaining to wager on the NFL playoffs.
