California Sports Betting Unlikely to be Legalized Before 2027

The legalization of California sports betting is inevitable. Even as it remains one of 11 states without legislation in place, this much we know.

But that timeline for the legalization of sports betting in California? Well, this is a vastly different story. 

Although an official timeline has never once existed, most assume a bill would be approved in 2025 or 2026 and then appear on the voting ballot by 2027. And to be sure, many still believe this is a possible window. 

Whether it’s the most likely timeline, though, is officially debatable. Recent comments from a panel of California tribal leaders suggest that The Golden State will not join the sports betting legalization for at least a few more years.

Legalization of California Sports Betting More Likely to Come in 2028…Or Later

California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) chairman James Siva was recently joined on a panel by other tribal leaders. The discussion, sponsored by the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) addressed an extensive catalog of questions—including the prospective timeline for California sports betting.

Siva, along with Pechanga Band of Mission Indians councilmember Catalina Chacon and San Manuel Band of Mission Indians vice chairman Johnny Hernandez, effectively pumped the brakes on imminent legalization in The Golden State. Here is the full scoop, courtesy of iGaming’s Jill R. Dorson:

“On Tuesday [January 21], a panel of California tribal leaders told ICE participants that they won't put legal sports betting on the 2026 ballot. Indian Country has reached some consensus, but polling indicates voters aren't interested. Siva said that tribes have ‘come too far and have too far to go to rush into this complex sports betting (issue) which is tied to igaming”. His remarks led a chorus during the ‘State of Gambling in California: Current Trends and Future Prospects’ discussion at the ICE convention in Barcelona.

“[During the panel,] the news was the tribes’ announcement that despite feeling pressure from the rise of sweepstakes, they would not pursue another ballot initiative so soon after spending nearly hundreds of millions to defeat a commercial proposal in 2022. ‘It’s not going to happen in 2026,’ Chacon said. ‘The data is telling us that the time is not right. Definitely not 2026, we’re b, but it has to include all tribal communities in California.’ Said Hernandez: ‘It has to include all tribes, including non-gaming tribes. I agree with Catalina that all tribes have to be in agreement. Gaming must go through the tribes.’”

These sentiments, while far from damning, paint a more complex, if bleaker, trajectory for California sports betting. The question is: To what end?

Does Sports Betting Stance Among California Tribes Singal Enduring Issues with Online Operators?

Hernandez’s comments, specifically, are worth our attention. Emphasizing that gaming must go through state tribes is not new. But it is a refrain that has not been presented so staunchly in a while. For a time, anyway, it has not seemed necessary.

Tribes only appeare to reiterate that message when online sports betting apps in the United States are attempting to circumvent collaboration or go against tribal wishes. This loomed as a major issue and talking point in 2022. And even for part of 2023.

However, more recently, California sports betting collaboration between tribes and online operators seems to be on the up and up. Until now, many were even wondering whether the timeline for sports betting legalization might be accelerated rather than pushed back beyond 2027. 

Given all of this, might Hernandez’s messaging be a harbinger of ongoing gripes between tribes and online sportsbooks in the United States? Or is it more so a cookie-cutter reiteration, meant only to reinforce that tribes are still hashing out details amongst themselves?

The Wait for Online Sports Betting in California May Be Even Longer

These comments coming out of the latest IGA panel do not just impact California’s overall sports betting timeline. They may lead to a longer delay for the launch of California online sports betting.

As tribes and online operators collaborate more, a staggered timeline is beginning to take shape. Initially, this led to assumptions that retail California sports betting would launch by 2027. California online sportsbooks would then join the fold a year or two later. By this timeline, online sports betting sites would enter the market in 2028 or 2029. 

But what happens if retail operations do not debut until 2028? Or 2029? Does this more extensive timeline mean California will launch both online and on-site operations at the same time? Or does it instead mean California online sports betting apps won’t enter the market until after the current decade is over, in 2030 or 2031, if not later?

We have no definitive answers to these inquiries at the moment. Perhaps we will get some during the current California legislative meetings. But we should also prepare for enduring ambiguity. If tribes don’t see the next year or two as a realistic timeline, discussions about sports betting in The Golden State may not result in much, if any, clarity on the matter.

Of course, if we have to guess, we would bet on any California sports betting delay directly impacting both retail and online aspirations. So if The Golden State does not launch on-site operations by 2027 or 2028, the chances of California online sports betting going live before 2030 seem slim. 

Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can find one that works for all of your sports betting needs: