Key points:
- Amendment 2 requires the market to open by December
- Regulations must be drafted and approved before the sports wagering market can launch
Those waiting for sports betting to take root in Missouri could have an open market by the summer, according to an NPR Kansas City news report.
During the election in November, Missouri voters pulled the lever in favor of a legal sports betting market by passing Amendment 2.
Under the terms of the amendment, a legal market would need to be in place statewide by December.
However, Missouri Gaming Commission Chair Jan Zimmerman told local news that she “she expects wagers to be placed by summer.”
She went on to add, “There's some advantages, I guess, to being relatively late to the game. The Missouri Gaming Commission is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the process, the integrity of gambling within the state of Missouri, and so we really can't afford to have anyone that's inappropriate, or, you know, shouldn't be involved in the gaming industry.”
To get the market in place, the state regulator will need to draft regulations that would later require the Governor and the Secretary of State’s approval.
The gaming commission could then issue gambling licenses after a 30-day public input period has passed.
Good to know: Amendment 2 allows legal sports betting through online platforms, casinos and professional sports teams
Though Amendment 2 passed in November, voters said no to Amendment 5, which would have allowed a new casino in the Lake of the Ozarks area.
To date, 38 states along with the District of Columbia allow some form of legal sports betting.
The Missouri Gaming Commission recently published its casino revenue results for the month of November.
The state’s casinos brought in a collective total of close to $153.6m in adjusted gross revenue (AGR) during the month. Results reflected an increase of 4% or nearly $6m in revenue when compared to totals posted in November 2023.
