The United States is far behind in the growth of online poker. The UIGEA, or Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, made it illegal for US banks to process transactions with offshore online poker sites. However, many sites continued to accept US players despite the UIGEA. Some of these sites figured out ways to work around the problems and the game grew even further until April 15, 2011.
Once you have signed up at an online poker site, the next step is to download the software. The software requires only a small amount of memory and shouldn’t take long even on archaic connections. Alternatively, there are many no-download poker games available at any poker website. However, no-download poker games don’t offer as many features as the full download version. Therefore, it is recommended to download the software and play poker in your browser.
Currently, only six states offer legal online poker. Pennsylvania is the last state to join the ranks, but other states are expected to do so in the near future. Once legal in Pennsylvania, BetMGM and West Virginia are expected to join the combined player pool. While no firm date has been set, Pennsylvania has been making progress and will probably join the group in the near future. While no one can say when online poker will be available in the Keystone State, there is no reason to expect anything less than an incredible influx of legal online poker sites.
Michigan made a push to legalize online poker in 2018 and has plans to launch legal online poker sites in early 2021. Other states are considering similar measures. Although the federal government has succeeded in pushing most global online poker site operators out of the US market, several offshore operators continue to accept US players. If a state decides to legalize online poker in the future, it is likely that the federal government will soon be forced to pass legislation to allow more online poker operators in the state.