Top stories around our network this week
The large states of Florida and California have many differences politically and culturally, but one shared aspect is how the future of legal sports betting for both — unlike in most states — is tied inextricably to their Indian tribes. The details in each state, however, have about as much in common as the bankrolls of the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Dodgers.
In Florida, the Seminoles are a very powerful tribe that has prospered from casino gambling and has been granted a virtual monopoly to run sports wagering through its compact with the state. A two-year court fight by parimutuels in the state to block the compact had put the tribe’s Hard Rock Bet online app on ice, but things heated up again this week.
Recent court rulings enabled the Seminoles to resume taking bets, which is just what they did Tuesday with absolutely no advance word to the media, courts, or anyone else about the new launch of Hard Rock Bet.
The surprise in that move stems from there still being pending state and federal court cases from the parimutuels trying to block the compact as illegal. Emphasizing the point on the day of the launch, West Flagler and Associates filed a new request with the state Supreme Court seeking to have it force the betting site to shut down.
There is no set time frame for the court to act on the request. In the meantime, the Seminoles are taking bets on a limited basis from those who either were sportsbook customers previously or qualify as rewards program members with the tribe’s six Florida casinos. This is in advance of the mobile platform being made available to the general public, which will have access starting Dec. 7 to retail sportsbooks opening at those casinos.
Thousands of miles to the west, there is no online or retail sports betting available in California, but the debate over it has been reignited in a controversial manner. Indian Country controls casino gambling in the state, and its leaders were chagrined not to be consulted by private individuals filing a plan to again pursue approval of legalized sports betting by ballot initiative — just a year after the tribes successfully derailed a similar effort by commercial companies.
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It seems clear that prospects for legalized sports betting in California are very dim without the tribes being on board, and while the newest proposal would essentially have them in charge of it, the fact that they had no role in developing it will keep them from embracing any 2024 referendum. They appear more open to considering a proposal for 2026, but only if they are involved in devising it from the get-go.
Between them, California and Florida have more than 60 million residents — nearly one-fifth the country’s population — making their future very important to every stakeholder involved in the sports betting industry. For that reason, covers their ongoing developments as major news. Our staff covers much more, however, as shown in the linked stories below from the past week. And for additional gaming industry news, be sure to check out , including its weekly Double Down recap column and podcast.
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