Those living in California have a vast number of gambling options. California has legalized certain types of gambling including:
- Parimutuel horse wagering
- Indian casinos
- Charitable gaming
- Card clubs
- State lottery
Unlike many other states, the legalization of certain types of gaming came to fruition from constitutional amendments as opposed to Legislature. For instance, the state lottery and pari-mutuel horse racing were enacted through a constitutional amendment. However, the Constitution prohibits New Jersey and Nevada methods of gambling.
In California gambling has become a huge business opportunity. The industry is approximately worth $14 billion. The amount lost by players each year is around $2.5 billion. Of course compared to California’s $700 billion economy it is negligible. However for the gambling industry it is a fairly sizable chunk.
In the United States, California is the 6th largest gambling state trailing Nevada, New Jersey, Mississippi, Illinois and Louisiana. This metric does not include Indian gaming since there is no reliable number for each state. Of these six, California is the only state that does not offer any high-stakes casinos.
The most popular types of gambling in California include the lottery, horse races, Indian gaming and card rooms (in that order). This information is based on gaming between players and the house, not players vs. players. Therefore, since a portion of gaming is in card rooms where gamblers play head-to-head, the information is not complete.
click here to see most Popular PagesWithin the state, there are a few regional differences. Southern California outside of Los Angeles leads the way followed by Los Angeles, Northern California outside of the Bay Area, the rest of the state and finally the San Francisco Bay Area. This information is for those that gamble in California not those that simply gamble.
Outside of the state, Californians spend over $10 billion each year in Nevada casinos while making 14 million visits. Californians are the largest population to visit Nevada establishments. The largest establishments of specific gaming include, card clubs, horse racing, the lottery, charitable gaming and bingo (in that order).
California has plenty of choices for the avid gambler. With Reno and Las Vegas only a few hours from many areas of California, citizens have even more ways to spend their money. As California continues to permit new gambling establishments to open, the popularity will continue to increase and hopefully improve the economy in the state.
