Last updated: December 16, 2024
Missouri voters have approved Amendment 2, legalizing sports betting statewide. The legislation includes online and mobile betting licenses and a 10% tax rate, with proceeds supporting the state’s Compulsive Gambling Prevention Fund. The Missouri Gaming Commission estimates annual tax revenue of up to $28.9 million, with sports wagering expected to go live by December 5, 2024. Efforts to legalize the practice began in 2019 and culminated with this major legislative step forward.
Major electoral news comes out of the United States, with voters in Missouri seemingly poised to approve changes to state legislation that would enable sports betting to be allowed as a fully regulated and lawful activity under the ballot ‘Amendment 2’.
The ballot up for proposition involves putting changes to the Missouri state constitution toward licensed online sports betting, gambling boats, sports districts, operators, and mobile licenses into effect. Federally, persons under the age of 21 would still be ruled out. As voting has occurred to this point, the outcome likely means the success of sports wagering within the state if voters continue down their current path.
The Missouri Gaming Commission states that revenues from sports betting will be taxed at 10%, and in that respect, there will be the possibility of some potential deductions for the purposes of promotional offers as well as federal taxes before applying the state revenues. Tax revenue will also increase the Compulsive Gambling Prevention Fund in the state.
Newly approved constitutional amendments could become effective as law thirty days from the date of their approval in Missouri. As such, sports betting in the state may start as early as December 5, 2024.
It is noteworthy that PlayAGS has recently obtained a license to operate within the state of Missouri.
Several Missouri governmental agencies estimate annual losses to the state of about $5.2m; however, they also estimate initial license fee revenue of $11.75m. The same state government agencies have estimated that tax revenue is expected to total as high as $28.9 million annually. Another economic study done for Winning for Missouri Education has estimated that the state will take in a total of $21.8 billion being bet through legislation in its first five years, with 98% of all bets coming from online sources.
A proposed constitutional amendment that would have allowed one more gambling boat license along a portion of the Osage River was also defeated.
The road to sports wagering legalization for sports betting in Missouri stretched far, coming on the heels of a dead attempt in 2019 to legalize the practice. Discussions about illegal sports wagering again emerged in January 2021 and again were renewed in January 2022.
