Fans in Missouri can start placing bets on sports next year thanks to a recent ballot measure that passed with just over 50% support in the November election. This makes Missouri the 39th state, along with Washington D.C., to allow sports betting since the U.S. Supreme Court opened the door to it in 2018.
The campaign to pass the measure was the most expensive in Missouri history, with DraftKings and FanDuel contributing $43 million to support it. Additionally, the state’s major sports teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs, pitched in $2 million to help legalize sports betting. On the other side, Caesars Entertainment, which operates three of Missouri’s casinos, spent $14 million in opposition.
The constitutional amendment allows for both on-site and mobile sports betting, with proceeds from licensing fees and taxes going towards problem gambling programs and education. The initiative also permits two mobile sports betting operators to be licensed directly by the Missouri Gaming Commission.
This victory for sports betting proponents in Missouri comes after several unsuccessful attempts to legalize it through the state Senate. While sports betting is now legal in most states, some, like California and Texas, still do not allow it. In California, voters rejected two proposals to legalize sports betting in 2022 after interest groups spent millions both for and against the measures.
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