Wanna bet? Now you can at a location near you

Betting on professional football games is as close as a local store, restaurant or sports bar. Five locations in the Cape Region have been selected as retail outlets for the new Delaware Sports Lottery.

Delaware is the only state east of the Mississippi River that offers legalized sports betting. The state was exempted from a 1992 federal ban on sports betting because it had a football sports lottery in place in 1976.

Of the 31 outlets in the state, 11 are in Sussex County and three are in Kent County. The five Cape Region outlets include J.D. Shuckers in the Long Neck area; Daily Market and Grotto Pizza Grand Slam in Lewes; and Jake's Seafood House and Nicola Pizza on the Avenue in Rehoboth Beach.

Revenue to the state in the first season of expanded betting is expected to be about $1.5 million, said Vernon Kirk, director of the Delaware Lottery. “But that's only an estimate because no one else does this,” he said.

Tim Wallace, co-owner of the Daily Market in Lewes, said the system was put into place very rapidly after the close of the General Assembly session. “By design it was not publicized until this past weekend,” he said. New sports terminals have been put into place beside the other lottery terminals.

“We are not expecting that much during the pre-season, but it should increase weekly as the regular season begins. There is a lot of interest in it,” Wallace said. “It's good that it started during the pre-season so we have a chance to work out any issues.”

He said the idea behind expanding the sports book is to make betting more convenient to attract more players. “There has been sports betting in the casinos for three years and there is a lot of interest in it,” Wallace said.

The Daily Market, the only non-sports bar offering betting in the Cape Region, is one of the state's largest lottery agents and the top agent in Sussex and Kent counties. “We are usually in the top 10 because we cater to our customers, and it's still a growing part of our business. We anticipate great sales; we are ready and eager for it,” Wallace said.

Gov. Jack Markell signed the measure expanding sports gambling June 28, although sports betting has been in place since 2009 at the state's three casinos. The bill allows Delaware Lottery to issue sports lottery and keno retailer licenses to Delaware businesses operating outside the state’s racetrack casinos. In addition, the new law authorizes the Delaware Lottery to distribute its existing ticket games on-line and paves the way to develop and oversee systems and programs designed to sell video lottery, table games and new offerings on the internet.

The state's original plan to offer betting on single games and wagering on a variety of sports, including collegiate games, was struck down in court in 2009. Delaware is one of only four states eligible to conduct sports betting.

Based on the court decision, Delaware's sports betting is restricted to parlay, or multiple, wagers on at least three professional football teams.

Bettors must correctly pick all games they select – complete with the point spread – to win. The more games played, the bigger the payout.

There is only one game – early bird – available for pre-season games, but a variety of games will become available once the regular season begins the first week in September. Players need a scorecard to understand the games whose names include half-point parlay, teaser, super teaser and reverse teaser. A Sports Lottery brochure detailing the games is available at outlets offering football betting.

Brad Alwood, the other owner of Daily Market, said there is even a game for those willing to bet on the winner of the championship game. The following are current odds on local teams: Eagles, 8/1; Ravens, 10/1; and Steelers, 15/1. At 180/1, the Jaguars are the biggest long shot to date.

Depending on the success of the expansion of football betting, more outlets could be added throughout the state next season, Kirk said. “We had a small window to get this up and running so we had to move quickly,” he said. Getting 31 outlets on-line was all the Delaware Lottery could handle and there were a limited number of betting terminals available, he said.

Seventy businesses were initially interested in the program. Kirk said the office did site surveys, conducted background checks and examined financial records, looked at floor traffic, parking and handicapped accessibility to make the selections. “It was quite a process with a lot of pieces to the puzzle,” he said.

The office also wanted to make sure outlets were placed throughout the state.