The Kansas City Chiefs are going to the Super Bowl, but the long-running Missouri sports betting standoff means fans in their home state can’t legally bet on them.
Super Bowl 58 betting numbers figure to be monstrous. Some of that money will come from Missouri’s neighbors, almost all of which have legal, regulated sports betting industries. However, bettors in the Show-Me State will have to wait another year (at least) for Super Bowl betting to come to Missouri.
Why is Missouri sports betting delayed?
It isn’t for a lack of trying. State lawmakers have considered measures to legalize sports betting in Missouri for several years in a row.
One familiar obstacle has sprung up multiple times over the past few legislative sessions. That’s Sen. Denny Hoskins, who has insisted Missouri sports betting legislation be coupled with laws on video lottery terminals (or VLTs). Most of Hoskins’s peers believe those issues should be treated separately.
However, Hoskins has used his power to effectively stymie any relevant bills that come to the Missouri Senate. In an odd twist, this included one bill Hoskins himself initially wrote last year. It was modified to include legal, regulated sports betting as a last-ditch effort, but it wasn’t considered in the Senate before the session adjourned.
Missouri sports betting bills will likely be considered again in 2024. However, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that those proposed pieces of legislation will meet the same fate as the rest.
Could 2025 be different?
There are signs that progress is coming. The biggest one is that Hoskins, who is term-limited, will exit the Senate in January of 2025. While that’s no guarantee Missouri sports betting will be legalized at that time, the removal of a roadblock can only improve the chances of this coming to pass.
In addition, a coalition of sports team owners has begun collecting signatures for a possible 2024 ballot initiative. If enough signatures are collected, Missouri voters will be able to decide on whether or not the industry can set up shop in the state.
For now, though, Missourians must leave the state to gamble legally. Seven of Missouri’s eight neighbors have legal, regulated sports betting in some form or fashion. Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Arkansas will likely see plenty of Chiefs bettors coming over the borders to place wagers between now and Super Bowl Sunday.
