When Will Mississippi Online Sports Betting be Legalized?

Heading into 2024 legislative meetings around the United States, many experts and industry insiders considered the legalization of Mississippi online sports betting a distinct possibility. Some even deemed it likely. 

As it turns out, they were wrong.

Yet another bill to legalize online sports betting in Mississippi flopped this past spring. Though there remains heavy interest in Mississippi sports betting expansion, multiple parties continue to struggle when it comes to finding common ground on a couple of issues.

This raises an interesting question that has many layers to it: What is a realistic timeline for online wagering in the Magnolia to become legal? 

What are the Current Mississippi Online Sports Betting Laws?

Before digging into the outlook on Mississippi online sports betting, let’s first run through the current status of gaming in the region. 

You may not realize it based on the current discussion on mobile wagering, but the Magnolia State was among the first to roll out legal gambling on sports. The United States Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act back in 2018. This decision effectively gave individual states the power to decide the fate of gambling in their region. While most took some time to expand their gaming laws, Mississippi sports betting went live that same year. 

Of course, this quick legalization did not include mobile sports betting apps in the USA. In fact, it still doesn’t include online sportsbooks in the United States. 

Sportsbooks in Mississippi can be found at various retail locations. This includes inside certain casinos. And sure, there are a few Mississippi online sports betting apps residents can use. But you must be on-location at a sportsbook to submit wagers. This means you cannot place bets from your own home or while on the go. You have to be on the property of a casino with a licensed sportsbook.

Why Hasn’t Mississippi Introduced Online Sports Wagering Yet?

Many are shocked that Mississippi online sports betting has yet to be legalized. The state is clearly open to legal wagering. Sanctioned sports gambling has been live for over a half-decade at this point. Logistically speaking, shouldn’t that longstanding interest result in an easy, more immediate path to the legalization of online sports betting throughout Mississippi?

You would certainly think this is the case. Heck, rewind the clock five years, and we ourselves absolutely would have predicted the legalization of Mississippi online sports betting by now. However, over the course of multiple attempts to expand gambling laws, various committees in the Magnolia State have clashed over a number of issues. 

This time around, it appears a level of reluctance from casinos to let online sports betting apps in the USA enter the market registered as the biggest roadblock. Pat Evans of Legal Sports Report offered a brief recap of what went wrong:

“Heading into the session, industry sources ranked Mississippi among the markets most likely to pass online sports betting legislation this year. That followed a Mobile Online Sports Betting Task Force last fall that helped inform the bill this year. Throughout those discussions, Mississippi casinos were split on the issue of expanding sports betting beyond their properties. ‘I still think the independent casinos do everything in their power to keep actual online sports betting from passing,’ a source told LSR before the session. ‘Even with talk of tethering or partnering, they feel threatened. But they’re also the most powerful group of casinos in Mississippi, more than Boyd, MGM and Caesars combined.”

Evans’ source turned out to be spot-on with their prediction. The push to legalize Mississippi online sports betting is dead for the rest of 2024. And since it’s not rolling out this year, we return to our original question: When will that change?

There is a Silver Lining for the Future of Online Sports Betting in the Magnolia State

Another failure no doubt isn’t sitting well with those who want Mississippi online sports betting to go live. Not only do enthusiastic gamblers want more convenient wagering options, but state officials understand that plenty of money is at stake. 

State legislators also have to know Mississippians are taking their online sports betting business elsewhere. Neighbors like Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee all allow mobile wagering and are just a short drive for many in the Magnolia State. In particular, Mississippi is likely forfeiting tons of revenue to online sports betting services in Tennessee.

This reality will almost assuredly fuel urgency to get a deal done in the near future. But the state will need casino cooperation to do it. At this moment, it isn’t clear how they can garner more of it. Can they propose increased taxes for online sportsbooks in Mississippi? Limit the number of Mississippi online sports betting licenses they give out? Further incentivize partnerships between casinos and online operators?

We won’t pretend to know the answer. But we do know this will be a top priority entering 2025 legislative meetings. And the silver lining to it all? Because retail sports betting in Mississippi is already legal, the state shouldn’t need voters to decide the fate of online wagering. 

Make no mistake, this is a big deal. It means that Mississippi needn’t wait for a general election year and approval to roll out online operations. They can do it in 2025. Or in 2026. Or in 2027. And so on. Whether their timeline for legal online sports betting is imminent remains a separate matter. If we had to guess, though, this is an issue that’ll be resolved before 2028.

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: