“Our staff has already been working with those operators who wish to participate in the [Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement] when it has final approvals,” Douglas Harbach, PGCB Director of Communications said referencing the final sign-off from Governor Josh Shapiro. “That should allow for a launch within the next couple of weeks.”
The news was first reported by PlayPennsylvania, which revealed that the launch could be just weeks away. Pokerfuse reached out to the PGCB and independently confirmed the timeline with Harbach.
This marks a major milestone years in the making — dating back to 2019 when Pennsylvania first launched regulated online poker. At the time, the state was already considering joining a multi-state agreement, but a reinterpretation of the Wire Act cast uncertainty over interstate poker and stalled progress.
As legal clarity emerged and it became evident that the Wire Act did not apply to online poker, other states like Michigan and West Virginia moved forward and joined MSIGA. Yet Pennsylvania, the largest state with a regulated online poker market, remained on the sidelines keeping its player pool fenced off even as others expanded.