BetMGM Poker has added its Pennsylvania customers to a growing multi-state pool covering Michigan and New Jersey. BetMGM PA online poker players can now compete in cash games and tournaments against players in Michigan and New Jersey.
Players will be hoping that enlarged player liquidity brings bigger prizepools and guarantees. With more players, BetMGM Poker can offer bigger weekly guarantees and daily “Big Shot” tourneys. It will be a test of Pennsylvania’s presence as the largest player in the regulated US poker market.
“Pennsylvania represents the largest state to join the shared player pool and turbocharges our poker platform,” said Angus Nisbet, BetMGM VP of Gaming.
“This expanded player pool will allow us to deliver more games and bigger tournaments to our players. BetMGM Poker is ready to celebrate the growth of our shared liquidity network throughout the spring and summer in a variety of ways.”
BetMGM Poker launched its new shared online poker pools at 9 a.m. on 28 April. They wasted no time celebrating the launch with a $35,000-GTD C-Note tourney kicking off a day later.
The tournament included a prize package for the BetMGM Poker Championship. Due to take place in June at ARIA in Las Vegas, the fourth annual championship features a $3M prizepool.
In addition, the BetMGM May Millions has been announced to run 8–11 May. The online festival features 18 events, including the $400k-GTD Championship with a $1,000 buy-in. The May Millions also runs across BetMGM Poker’s sister site, BorgataPoker.
BetMGM Poker has been operating as a skin of Borgata Poker and partypoker since it went live in 2021. The BetMGM Poker network already operates with a successful three-skin network in Ontario.
Despite a ring-fenced PA online poker market up until now, BetMGM Poker has been doing well. It outperformed more established brands, such as PokerStars, especially on cash games. Joining MSIGA could boost the BetMGM poker network, especially in NJ, where it operates its partypoker brand.
BetMGM Poker entered the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) in November of last year. However, until April, its customers in PA have been restricted to competing online against other players within the Keystone State.
That all changed on April 28 when PA Governor, Josh Shapiro, signed the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). It means Pennsylvania’s 150,000+ online poker players can now join Hold’em and Omaha fanatics in the rest of the “commonwealth”.
In doing so, Pennsylvania becomes the largest market in a pool of regulated states that includes Nevada, New Jersey, West Virginia, Michigan, and Delaware.
“This is a commonsense step to support hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians, grow our economy, and bring in more revenue to support our schools, our seniors, our small businesses, and more,” said Gov. Shapiro in April.
“Three of our neighbors are already part of this agreement – and with this action today, we’re making sure Pennsylvania remains competitive in a rapidly growing online market.”
BetMGM Poker isn’t the only online site licking its lips at the prospect of shared player pools. WSOP.com has also expanded its player pool by linking up customers in PA, MI, NJ, plus NV.
The move by WSOP.com comes one month before the start of the World Series of Poker. However, the World Series of Poker has wasted no time in announcing its online bracelet schedule for the 2025 season.
The regulated poker site has announced it is to award 30 bracelets for WSOP Online. It will be the first time that players in PA, NJ, NV, and MI can compete for the same online bracelets. Plus, five of the online bracelets will feature live final tables at the Horseshoe in Las Vegas.
PokerStars has been the dominant online poker force in Pennsylvania since it went live in the state in 2019. However, the slowness of the former world’s biggest online poker site to join other pools is still confusing players.
As Pennsylvania’s original online poker player, PokerStars could find joining its MI and NJ customer bases hard to resist.
Elsewhere, BetRivers has confirmed it will launch its own multi-state poker network in due course. BetRivers Poker already debuted in PA in 2024 and has partnerships with Rivers Casinos in the state. BetRivers also enjoys exclusive online poker access to the Delaware market.
BetRivers has been one of the major online gambling operators in many newly-regulated US states. Parent company, Rush Street Interactive, will feel confident it can attract enough numbers with lower rake via its own network.
Connecticut also announced Senate Bill 1,464 in March to allow it to join the MSIGA. Currently, DraftKings and FanDuel are the exclusive online gambling operators in CT. However, an MSIGA deal could open the doors for the two gambling companies to supply poker on their platforms.
