JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (WGEM) – Sports betting is now legal, but Missourians have to wait a couple more months to legally place sports bets.
Amendment Two passed with a narrow margin. With no challengers, sports betting became legal in Missouri earlier this month.
For the Missouri Gaming Commission, the real work starts now. Commissioner Jan Zimmerman said they are writing rules, preparing the licensing process and researching how other states implemented sports betting. They’re hoping to have sports betting up and running in the summer of 2025.
“A lot of people felt like the election took place in November and they’d be able to sports bet the next day,” Zimmerman said.
Amendment Two sets a December 2025 deadline for things to be set up.
At that time, Missourians can place a bet on your phone or through an in person broker at a sports stadium.
“Individuals will be able to sports bet in those 400 yards surrounding those stadiums, but if they go outside those 400 yards, they’ll still be able to use their phone to sports bet,” Zimmerman said.
To get all of this done in time, the Gaming Commission is hiring some new people with sports betting expertise.
In Missouri, there were more than 11 million attempts to place a sports bet just during the first half of the 2024 football season, according to data from GeoComply.
There will be a 10% tax on that gambling revenue. The auditor’s office is estimating up to $29 million in tax revenue coming from sports betting.
That revenue is allocated first to cover any of the “reasonable expenses” incurred by the Gaming Commission that were not covered by revenue from fees.
After those expenses are covered, 10% of the remaining wagering tax revenue or $5 million dollars, whichever is greater, would be allocated to the state’s Compulsive Gaming Prevention Fund.
Finally, whatever revenue is remaining is legally required to be spent on “institutions of elementary, secondary, and higher education” in Missouri.
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