Missouri will get sports betting next year, but the decision couldn’t have been any closer. To say that Missouri voters took us on a roller-coaster ride Tuesday as they voted on a sports betting amendment is an understatement.
Voters approved legal sports betting by a razor-thin margin of just over 7,000 votes, with 50.1% voting yes and 49.9% voting no. Per the amendment, Missouri sports betting must now launch by Dec. 1, 2025, but it will be up to legislators to iron out the details of that.
Amendment vote was a microcosm of years-long legislative struggle
It’s only fitting that Missouri sports betting went through an endless wave of ups and downs. A bill passed in the state over the summer put the question to state’s residents to decide whether they wanted legal sports betting, by answering yes or no to a question on Tuesday’s ballot.
The outcome wasn’t clear until all votes were tallied. At some points in the evening, it looked like sports betting wouldn’t make it across the finish line.
There have been multiple efforts from Missouri legislators to pass sports betting over the last few years. Yet most of those efforts eventually fell flat, leaving Missourians yearning to join their peers in neighboring Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, and Tennessee, all of which have preceded Missouri into the world of legal betting.
The legislature’s constant failure to pass sports betting led Rep. Crystal Quade to say the following about the sports betting amendment at a debate hosted by the Missouri Press Association in late September:
I do support this initiative — this measure. This is one, again, that I wish the legislature had been able to actually get this done appropriately … we’ve seen for years that the status quo in Jefferson City is gridlock and fighting with each other instead of actually moving legislation through.
What’s ahead for Missouri sports betting?
Whenever a state legalizes sports betting, you want to look at three key pieces of information:
- When will it launch?
- What’s the tax rate for operators?
- Which forms of sports betting are allowed?
The amendment voters approved requires sports betting to launch by Dec. 1, 2025. The tax rate will be 10%—that money will go toward the state’s education fund. That’s a fairly low tax rate, which may mean the state still needs to look for revenue elsewhere. However, it’s good news for bettors, as it means the operators can afford to be generous with promotions while still remaining profitable.
As for what types of sports betting will be allowed, Missourians will have three options: mobile apps, retail betting at riverboat casinos, and new betting facilities near professional sports arenas and stadiums.
So, as we look ahead to 2025, we’ll likely see a slew of online sportsbook apps launch and land-based sportsbooks open up at some of the 13 riverboats across the state.
As for sports zones (“sports districts” per the amendment), we’ll likely see a land-based sportsbook launch in around the following sports facilities:
- Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Kaffuman Stadium (Kansas City Royals)
- Busch Stadium (St. Louis Cardinals)
- Scottrade Center (St. Louis Blues)
- Children’s Mercy Park (Sporting Kansas City)
When will sportsbooks launch?
Many states haved launched sportsbooks within six months of legalization. However, sometimes the process takes longer. In Missouri, it’s been held back by the need to win voter approval first and handle the rule-making afterward.
So, the timeline next year will depend on how quickly legislators and regulators can formulate rules and guardrails for its sports betting market. If the recent past is any indication as to how quickly the legislature can move, we may have to wait until after the summer to see Missouri sports betting go live.
