Will Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker Be Granted Licenses in the United States?

Q: Will Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker Be Allowed to Enter a Regulated US Poker Market?

A: Regulated and licensed online poker is coming to the United States, whether it takes one year or ten years. A number of major brick-and-mortar casinos are now in favor of regulated online poker in the United States, which means that it will eventually come to fruition.

The big question that many people have is - will Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars be granted licenses to operate in the United States when online poker legislation is finally passed in the country?

The answer - almost definitely no.

Pokerstars, Full Tilt Poker and UB/AP have been accused of some serious crimes by the US government. Money laundering. Bank fraud. Illegal gambling offenses. The reason that the US government filed these charges is because they believe that they have an airtight case against the three companies.

Will the US government be willing to give out a license to a company that has been accused of all of these different things, even if they end up reaching a settlement in the future? In my opinion, absolutely not.

A company like Party Poker, on the other hand, will likely be granted a license by the US government if there is regulated and licensed online poker in the United States in the future. Party Poker voluntarily pulled out of the US market after the UIGEA was passed into law, and they also reached a settlement with the US government. If online poker legislation is passed in the United States in the future, expect Party Poker to almost certainly receive a license.

Full Tilt Poker, Pokerstars and UB/AP on the other hand? Virtually zero chance.

With regulated online poker in the United States, you will see sites such as Bellagiopoker.com, Wynnpoker.com and likely PartyPoker.com. Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker? Don't hold your breath - I don't think that these two companies will ever be allowed back into the United States.


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