Expert Believes Missouri Sports Betting will be Live Before 2025 NFL Regular Season

Now that Missouri sports betting is officially legalized, pretty much everyone keeps asking the same question: When will it launch to the public?

As things currently stand, this is an inquiry without an answer. Amendment 2, which legalizes sports betting in Missouri, stipulates that The Show-Me State roll out operations no later than December 2025. But that is still roughly one year away. And to this point, officials remain reluctant to pinpoint a specific date—or even month.

This uncertainty lends itself to speculation. Much of that conjecture comes on the backs of other launches for online sports betting in the United States. And as many will tell you, it can take more than a year for operations to go live. Some states, in fact, end up waiting multiple years. 

The language in Amendment 2 ensures this will not be the case. Most assume Missouri sports betting will go live in time for the 2025 NFL season. This way, the state can capitalize on the influx of football betting around the time. 

Subscribing to this logic puts the Missouri sports betting launch on track for August 2024. At the latest, the thinking goes, it will go live in September 2024. Certain officials acknowledge this goal. They also usually nod to its ambitiousness. And yet, at least one expert believes Missouri might launch sports betting even sooner than most expect.

Previous Launches Provide an Easier Roadmap for Missouri Sports Betting Rollout

Speaking with Tre Kent of the Columbia Missourian, Matt Para of Spectrum Gaming Capital notes that the Missouri sports betting rollout is almost perfectly positioned to beat out previous launch timelines. His argument is essentially that the entire process has become easier through precedent and repetition:

“‘The process of getting sports betting operational has also become easier, as sports betting platforms are accustomed to the regulatory standards required by states, with only slight adjustments needed,’ Para said. ‘They’ve scaled their operations across so many jurisdictions and each jurisdiction has a slight little tweak that makes it different. This is just another market; there’s a recipe for it.’ Para said the regulatory standards that are common among states are related to geolocation — ensuring players are only playing within state lines — customer verification, anti-money laundering measures and responsible gambling features.

“With the groundwork having already been laid, the Missouri Gaming Commission can turn its attention to the licensing process, rather than getting bogged down by the fine details, [Legal Sports Report’s Patrick] Evans said. ‘Missouri is kind of unique in that most of the regulations are already laid out in what was in the ballot question. So, the Missouri Gaming Commission won’t have to do a whole lot.’”

This overall outlook will come as great news for Missourians hoping to bet on NFL football before next season kicks off. At the same time, it also suggests the state may have the ability to launch wagering long before betting on the 2025 NFL season commences.

How Soon Can Missouri Theoretically Launch Sports Wagering?

Before anyone gets too ahead of the game, we can safely say Missouri sports betting will not be live in time for betting on the 2025 Super Bowl. But an August 2024 launch is roughly seven months away, at this writing. The Show Me State also may not need that much time.

Look no further than sports betting in Kansas as potential proof. The Sunflower State launched operations approximately three months after wagering was legalized. And unlike Missouri, the piece of legislation that green lit sports betting did not have nearly as much of the protocols, guidelines and infrastructures mapped out.

On top of that, Kansas sports betting launched in September 2022, more than two years ago. While plenty of states went through the process before then, this number is much higher now. The legwork that goes into nearly every sports betting launch is streamlined. 

Technically speaking, if Missouri sports betting regulators accelerate the licensing process, the state may perhaps beat Kansas’ three-month wait. 

But for argument’s sake, let’s use that exact three-month window as the baseline. This would put online sports betting in Missouri live by the end of March 2025 or start of April 2025. That gives prospective bettors the chance to wager on the NBA and NHL playoffs, among many other tentpole events.

Do Not Expect Missouri to Rush Their Sports Gambling Rollout

Despite the ability to launch sports betting posthaste, we do not expect Missouri to travel down the fastest path. For starters, the state has treated this entire process with deliberateness. The licensing process, in particular, may be one on which it harps.

More than anything, though, states tend to like the idea of lining up sports betting launches with the start of the NFL season. Football remains the biggest driver of sports betting in the United States. Tailoring a market’s gambling launch around the start of the season stands to drum up a ton of interest.

By comparison, the returns on launching in time for, say, betting on the NHL Stanley Cup will not be nearly as lucrative. Granted, this might not matter in the grand scheme. Football betting revenue will invariably come down the pipeline, stakeholders love the optics of massive openings. 

As such, if we had to guess, Missouri sports betting will launch near the end of July 2025 or start of August 2025. Still, the prospect of it happening much sooner remains in play. At the very least, Missouri seems well positioned to state a soft open well before the 2025 NFL season ever kicks off.

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