‘It’s going to mean a lot for us’: Online sports betting kicks off in Kentucky

WILLIAMSBURG, Ky. (WYMT) - On Thursday, online sports betting officially kicked off in Kentucky.

Folks gathered at the Mint Gaming Hall Cumberland to celebrate and tune into Kentucky Sports Radio.

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Host of KSR, Matt Jones, said this is a good thing for the Commonwealth.

“But, it’s also been something that I think fits in with the state, the history of horse racing here,” he said. “So, I think it’s going to be great for the state and give us money into the state ... rather than giving it over to the other states that are around us.”

Jones added that it will make watching games more enjoyable for fans.

“It’ll be added revenue for the state and it’s something fun for people when they want to watch games outside of just a Kentucky game that they’re interested in and the fact that you can do it from your phone, makes it easy,” he explained.

Williamsburg Mayor Roddy Harrison said it’s good to see how many people are interested in participating.

“It was kinda funny looking around the room and everybody was on their iPhones, downloading the app and all that kind of stuff. So, it’s really exciting and it’s going to mean a lot for us and it’s going to bring a lot of more people here,” he said.

He said it will have a positive impact on Kentucky’s economy.

“It takes care of everyone, it’s not just one entity seeing some success out of this. This, is going to kick it into high gear, they can be going through a drive-thru at Wendy’s and be able to do that,” he said.

Jones said it’s important to play safe.

“Be responsible about it, it’s like anything else, you have to make good decisions but, use it as a fun thing, whether football, when basketball starts up, it’s a fun thing to do with your family and with your friends, but also always make sure, it’s real money so you’ve got to be careful,” he explained.

For the ceremonial first bet, he put $100 to the University of Kentucky’s basketball team to win the national championship.

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