With legal online poker in Pennsylvania set to launch July 15, players are wondering if the Keystone State’s poker sites will allow for merged, interstate competition against players from other states with legalized online poker.

For now, the answer is no. The online poker sites will be available only within Pennsylvania state borders, and will not share liquidity with already existing networks in Nevada, New Jersey and/or Delaware.

PokerStars, partypoker, and WSOP/888Poker will all offer online poker in Pennsylvania, and all of these brands offer legal U.S. online poker. The Pennsylvania offerings from these companies, however, will be limited to a Pennsylvania-only player pool for the foreseeable future.

State of Online Poker in the U.S.

WSOP/888Poker operates the only merged multi-state U.S. online poker network, as players who log into any network skin (WSOP Nevada, WSOP New Jersey, 888Poker New Jersey, and the 888Poker network in Delaware) all get to play against each other.

The brand’s Pennsylvania offering will run in partnership with Harrah’s Philadelphia, but this Pennsylvania operation will be segregated from the NV/NJ/DE player pools and only allow players to compete against other players within state borders.

Pennsylvania’s population of nearly 13 million is equal to the combined population of Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware, so if the networks were to merge at some point, WSOP/888Poker would house the largest U.S. player pool for regulated, legal online poker.

PokerStars and partypoker operate poker networks in New Jersey (PokerStars NJ and partypoker NJ), but the Pennsylvania clients from both of these brands will also be limited to a PA-only player pool and not be merged with their New Jersey counterparts.

Merged U.S. Networks in the Future?

The DOJ reversal of opinion on the Wire Act, which states that all gambling transactions that cross state lines are illegal, almost certainly had an impact on the decision to keep these poker operations strictly within Pennsylvania borders. That ruling came as a surprise when the DOJ made the announcement in January 2019, especially considering that WSOP/888Poker just recently launched its merged, three-state network in May 2018.

The ability for different states to share liquidity among its online gaming player pools is made possible by the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). This agreement started to come together shortly after both Delaware and Nevada became the first U.S. states to legalize online poker (post-Black Friday) in 2012.

This legislation was crafted by the governors of the two states, with Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and Delaware Gov. Jack Markell singing the agreement in 2014. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed into the agreement in 2017, laying the groundwork for the current three-state online poker network operated by WSOP/888.

While it appears that the DOJ ruling might prevent Pennsylvania from joining the MSIGA, there’s still a chance we could see it happen in the future, according to Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board Communications Director Doug Harbach.

Harbach didn’t comment directly about the DOJ ruling, but contends that Pennsylvania’s online gaming operations could still merge player pools with other states at some point.

“It is permitted under the PA Gaming Act,” Harbach said. “The market will decide if that is something it feels is necessary. Though PA is certainly different from states like Nevada and Delaware, due to its much larger population.”

Outlook for the Future

After months of delays from the original expected start date, the launch of Pennsylvania’s online gaming operations is now just a few weeks away.  Players will have no less than seven different poker clients to choose from when all of the state’s approved operators are up and running.

It’s a Pennsylvania-only player pool for these operators, for now. When asked about the timeline of a possible entry into the multi-state agreement, Harbach said it’s too soon to speculate.

“Until online gaming is launched and reaches some maturity, it would be difficult to answer that question,” Harbach said.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf would have to sign into an agreement to join the MSIGA, which would make Pennsylvania the fourth state to join the multi-state network. Five states have legalized online gambling and poker, with West Virginia becoming the fifth in March 2019.

What impact would joining the MSIGA have on Pennsylvania’s online gambling economy? Harbach stated that it’s too soon to tell.

“Again, can’t speculate at this point because we have yet to launch and see any result of an iGaming poker market exclusive to play just in the Commonwealth,” Harbach said.

Options for Online Poker in the United States

Nevada/New Jersey/Delaware (Merged Player Network)

• WSOP Nevada
• WSOP New Jersey
• 888Poker New Jersey
• 888Poker Network Delaware (Delaware Park, Dover Downs, Harrington Raceway)

New Jersey Only

• PokerStarsNJ
• partypoker NJ/Borgata Poker/PlayMGM
• Pala Poker

Pennsylvania Only

• PokerStars (Mount Airy Casino Resort)
• WSOP/888Poker (Harrah’s Philadelphia)
• partypoker (Valley Forge Casino)
• GAN/Kambi (Parx Casino)
• IGT (Hollywood Casino)
• Rush Street Interactive/Kambi (SugarHouse Casino)
• Sands Bethlehem (TBD)

West Virginia

• Online Poker legalized March 2019, Operators TBD