Even though the future of legalized online sports betting in Kansas is as difficult to make out as a barn during a January snowstorm on the plains, Bally’s Corporation has entered a multi-year arrangement with Boot Hill Casino & Resort to (eventually) bring to market a sports betting app in the state.
In March, the Kansas State Senate passed Senate Bill 84, which would legalize online and retail sports betting. Yet, three weeks later the Kansas House of Representatives rejected the bill, putting online sports betting into doubt in the Jayhawk State.
Bally’s appears to be speculating that Kansas will address legalizing sports betting in their next legislative session, which will commence this fall. Some state leaders, like Ronald Ryckman Jr., a Republican state house representative, admit that there are obstacles.
“There were just too many folks that wanted different things,” Ryckman Jr. told the Sunflower State Journal in March. “There are so many conflicting opinions.”
Whether the Kansas legislature can appease all of the lawmakers who have a stake in the bill remains to be seen. But Bally’s is hedging that they will, and if so it would be the 14th state that the company operates in. Kansas would be the third state where Bally’s does not operate a land-based casino but would offer their sports betting product through a mobile platform alternative.
Bally’s Ready For Kansas Sports Betting
In a statement announcing their partnership with Boot Hill Casino & Resort, Bally’s indicates that they wish to launch the “Bally’s Bet” mobile sports application in Kansas, should the state legalize sports wagering.
Pro-sports betting lawmakers and proponents of legalized sports gambling have implored the citizens of the state to tell their representatives if they support the issue. Public pressure may sway those in the state capital who are wavering on the bill.
All games of chance and wagering in Kansas are under the province of The Kansas State Lottery. Many other states set things up the same way, but in Kansas there have been many issues that have proved to be too tricky to solve. It’s believed that the majority of lawmakers in the state support some sort of legalized sports betting, but there are some who are worried about the liability the state would risk under breach of contract laws and possible gambling corruption cases.
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