Efforts to legalize sports betting in Missouri failed again in the 2024 legislative session. However, plenty of stakeholders in the state, including pro sports organizations, casinos, and politicians, want legal betting, and a ballot campaign appears on track to let voters decide the fate of sports betting at the polls in November.
Winning for Missouri Education submitted 340,000 signatures to the secretary of state’s office and is currently waiting for the signatures to be counted. 170,000 valid signatures are required to qualify for the ballot.
There is some external pressure to legalize sports betting as seven of the eight states bordering Missouri (Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Nebraska) have legal betting in some form. The only neighboring state that does not allow sports betting is Oklahoma.
Missouri boasts two major cities with major league pro sports galore. St. Louis offers the MLB Cardinals and NHL Blues. At the same time, Kansas City is home to the NFL Chiefs and MLB Royals. Big-time college sports are also a part of the sports landscape with the Missouri Tigers of the SEC. There is also plenty of college sports passion for neighboring teams. The Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas State Wildcats, Iowa Hawkeyes, Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Illinois Fighting Illini all have large followings.
But the state animal of Missouri is the mule. The mule is known for being stubborn, prickly, hard-headed, and difficult. And that would describe Missouri politicians and their inability to legalize sports gambling. Still, there is a belief that it will happen sooner rather than later.
State of Missouri Sports Betting Overview
Four Missouri sports betting bills introduced in 2024 would authorize online sports betting and retail sportsbooks: SB 852 Authorizes online sports betting and retail sportsbooks at riverboat casinos; professional sports teams and casinos may apply for licenses to operate one online sports betting platform apiece; 12% tax on sports wagering.
SB 824: Nearly the same as SB 852, except this bill establishes a 10% tax on sports wagering and authorizes video lottery terminals at fraternal organizations, veterans’ organizations, and qualifying truck stops.
HB 2331: Authorizes online sports betting and retail sportsbooks; professional teams may operate one online betting platform each; licensed casinos may each operate up to three individual online betting brands and one retail sportsbook; 10% tax on sports wagering
HB 2835: Nearly the same as HB 2835, except this bill authorizes video lottery terminals at fraternal organizations, veterans’ organizations, and truck stops
In addition, Missouri’s professional sports teams have backed a petition drive to put sports betting on the November 2024 ballot. The Winning for Missouri Education coalition seeks to bypass the legislative process by taking the issue directly to voters.
The petition seems to be on track to put sports betting on the ballot. If voters approve the measure in November, Missouri lawmakers will approve legislation allowing casinos and professional sports teams to offer online sports betting and operate retail sportsbooks at casinos. The law would also implement a 10% tax and ensure Missouri’s Compulsive Gaming Fund receives at least $5 million in funding per year.
State of Missouri Sports Betting Timeline
June 6, 2024 — Saint Louis University and YouGov will reportedly release a new sports betting poll in August.
May 27, 2024 — A ballot campaign report from the Winning for Missouri Education Committee states that FanDuel and DraftKings contributed $6 million toward signature collection efforts in the state.
May 24, 2024 — The Missouri Legislature adjourns for the year without passing sports betting legislation. Proponents of legal betting will now hope sports betting will appear on the ballot in November.
May 6, 2024 — Winning for Missouri Education submits 340,000 signatures to the secretary of state’s office in an attempt to put legal Missouri sports betting on the November ballot. May 5 was the deadline to submit signatures.
May 2, 2024 — In an attempt to end Missouri’s legislative stalemate when it comes to sports betting, Rep. Crystal Quade carries forward her sports betting bill. The bill combines Rep. Dan Houx’s active sports betting bill with the framework for video lottery terminals.
April 18, 2024 — Winning For Missouri Education has obtained more than 300,000 signatures in an effort to put Missouri sports betting on the ballot in November. A total of 170,000 valid signatures must be submitted to the Secretary of State by May 5.
March 23, 2024 — The Missouri Gaming Commission sent a memo to licensed fantasy sports operators on March 19 to cease offering against-the-house pick’em contests. The state still allows peer-to-peer fantasy contests.
Jan. 5, 2023 — Two new sports betting bills, SB 852 and SB 824, were filed at the start of the 2024 Missouri state legislative session.
Dec. 29, 2023 — Missouri casinos reported $147.6 million in revenue in November, down slightly from October.
Dec. 4, 2023 — The Missouri Secretary of State approved ballot language in the effort to legalize sports betting in the state. Next, organizers of the proposal must obtain signatures from voters.
Sept. 15, 2023 — The Missouri Pro Sports Coalition filed eight proposals to amend the state constitution to allow Missouri sportsbooks. If approved, it could lead to a state-wide vote on sports betting.
Sept. 8, 2023 — The Kansas City Chiefs are one of nine NFL teams partnered with Game Sense and BetMGM to do in-stadium responsible gambling promotion during the season.
July 25, 2023 — In a recent interview with LSR, St. Louis Cardinals president Bill DeWitt III expressed his frustration with the process of bringing legal sports betting to Missouri.
The Hoskins obstruction began in 2022 when he prevented Rep. Dan Houx’s proposal despite a coalition of the state’s professional teams, casinos, and national sportsbook operators backing the legislation.
There was renewed hope in 2022 for Missouri online sports betting. A proposal from a coalition backed by the state’s professional sports teams, casinos, and national sportsbook operators had steam.
Legislation containing the proposal passed the House and advanced to the Senate floor. In the Senate chamber, however, the proposal was filibustered by the author of a competing bill.
The casino disagreed with the new compromises, while three alternate proposals were presented to the coalition. The Senate adjourned for the year without acting on a sports betting bill, leaving legalization hopes to future years.
In 2021, While there was momentum from previous years’ efforts, Missouri sports betting legislation failed to gain too much traction in 2021. A main bill legalizing sports betting fell to the side without casino support as it was tied to video lottery terminal regulation.
Despite the progress made in the special committee at the end of 2019, Missouri legislators introduced six bills in 2020, and most had the same problems as old bills.
Even after what Rep. Dan Shaul said in the special committee, he introduced a bill with an integrity fee and official league data. That bill, which also included video lottery terminals and allowed the lottery to offer games based on the outcomes of sporting events, quickly advanced to the House floor.
Two other bills advanced with committee votes, Rep. Cody Smith’s H 2284 and Rep. Phil Christofanelli’s H 2318.
Both their bills limited MS sports betting to riverboat casinos, permitting online platforms to tether with the casinos. Smith removed the integrity fee from his bill in the committee, leaving the official league data mandate.
Christofanelli’s bill didn’t include an integrity fee or data mandate and kept the tax rate at 6.75%, the same as Nevada.
With three bills primed for the House floor entering March, it appeared Missouri was ready to move on sports betting. Then, the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the session. When lawmakers went back to work, sports betting was not a focus.
After three legislative sessions, the Show-Me State seems better to grasp the best practices for sports betting legislation. We’ll see if lawmakers take what they have learned into 2021.