The UIGEA (The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006) was a law passed in the United States of America on the 30th September 2006, which made online gambling illegal in the country. As a result of this, many poker rooms ceased to allow American Players to play on their site, and still to this day many do not allow them. The bill prohibits the transfer of money from an American bank account or financial institution onto an online poker site. Although online gambling is supposedly illegal in the United States, many residents still play.
There are a number of online poker rooms that still accept US players, which is not illegal, as they are located outside of the United States. Since 2006, a lot of bad publicity has been ousted from the gambling industry. The most detrimental has been the news that Party Poker and Bodog Poker have been fined millions of dollars by the US government and other organizations for allegations which cannot be confirmed. Bodog Poker also had their domain name ceased by the Kentucky government after they blocked their residents from gambling online.
Many politicians and American citizens are trying to appeal the bill, but many doubts the government will ever change its firm stance on online gambling and even if they could change this law, it would take several years for it to be passed. Some speculation has surrounded the new President, Barack Obama, after it was leaked that the president is a fan of online poker. This is a small piece of hope for a broad community who hope one day; they will have the freedom the country has always promised.
Overall the UIGEA has caused a huge amount of damage to an industry, which was booming at the time of the bill, and has caused a large amount of sites to cease operations due to the lack of traffic and players.
Sites that do not allow US Players
iPoker Network
Party Poker
Microgaming Network
Ongame Network
Entraction Network
Sites that allow US Players
Pokerstars
Full Tilt Poker
Cereus Network
Cake Poker Network
Merge Network
Bodog Poker
Everleaf Network
Pitbull Poker
Everest Poker
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