Its departure from the US market, however, took many others with it.Ĭasino operators were wary of American players for years, especially after the 2011 indictments of poker executives, an event that was deemed Black Friday for online poker. The most stunning exit at that time was PartyPoker, which had dominated the online gaming industry with poker and casino games for years. The passage of the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act (UIGEA) was more than a jab at online poker, it was a signal to online casinos everywhere to exit the American market.

When the US government took a stand in 2006, however, some of that changed. Poker grew, and online casinos grew right alongside it. New online casinos were arriving on the scene in droves in 20, and existing operators were expanding their casino offerings to include more video poker, table poker variations, and entertaining slots options. The poker boom that began in 2003 also delivered players to internet casinos, where they could find games besides like video poker as well as slots and table games. The popularity of online casinos soared with American players when online poker hit its stride in the early 2000s.