Missouri Sports Betting Launch might Come Before Kansas Sportsbook Changes

Missouri sports bettors have crossed into Kansas for almost three years to position legal sports bets. Three years from now, Kansas citizens may do the exact same.

Key takeaways

– Kansas legislators halted brand-new sportsbook license extensions up until 2026, meaning possible regulatory changes that might affect its six legal operators after 2027.

– Missouri is set to release legal mobile sportsbooks in late 2025, potentially reversing cross-border betting trends as Kansas bettors may head east.

– Future modifications in Kansas might include a sole-operator model or tax walkings, impacting competition and encouraging wagerers to seek options in Missouri.

Kansas sports wagering background

Kansas released its very first legal mobile sportsbooks in 2022. Six books now take bets: BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, ESPN BET, Fanatics and FanDuel.

The ability to place legal bets in Kansas draws in bettors on the Missouri side of the Kansas City city location to Kansas to bet, with some doing so most or nearly every day of the week.

That might alter if Kansas legislators upend the present regulatory structure. Sources inform Covers some legislators want to increase the state’s sports betting tax earnings, amongst the most affordable per capita of any of the 30 states with statewide legal mobile sportsbooks.

Kansas’ most likely reconsideration of its six-book legal sports betting market next year will follow Missouri goes live with as lots of as a lots books; if Kansas significantly cuts its offerings, it could lead KS bettors to place bets in MO, the opposite of the existing pattern

The alterations might be as easy as a tax boost. It might likewise result in a sole-source operator design some lawmakers are thinking about, one that might create more direct profits for the state however possibly displace some or all of the six existing sportsbooks when their licenses end in Aug. 2027.

The legislation passed earlier this month just positions a restriction up until 2026, implying Kansas’ existing sportsbooks can take bets up until their licenses end the following year. Lawmakers might not even think about a remarkable change to the regulative structure when they reconvene for the 2026 session, sports betting implying no noticeable effect for Sunflower State bettors.

But the license extension prohibition leaves the possibility for significant changes that didn’t seem practical weeks ago.

Missouri sportsbooks prepare to release

The Kansas relocation comes as Missouri nears the launch of its legal sportsbooks.

Missouri’s multi-year sports betting wagering legalization push ended in Nov. 2024, when voters narrowly authorized a tally measure to bring legal retail and online sportsbooks to the state. The vote followed years of failed efforts to legislate sports betting in the legislature.

Missouri’s legal sportsbooks are set to begin taking bets in the fourth quarter of 2025. There are also set to be almost twice as numerous wagering alternatives in Missouri as Kansas.

FanDuel and DraftKings contributed more than $30 million to support the ballot procedure. The 2 U.S. market share leaders have, as anticipated, revealed plans to take bets in Missouri when licensed.

Other books including BetMGM, and Underdog likewise revealed launch strategies. Bet365 struck an offer with MLB’s St. Louis Cardinals and also prepares to accept bets in the state.

Caesars, which opposed the tally step over license allowance concerns, operates 3 Missouri gambling establishments and is qualified to launch its online book in the state. Penn Entertainment (ESPN BET) and Bally’s (Bally Bet) also run Missouri casinos that approve them immediate market gain access to.

Other books including Hard Rock, live in Illinois, could likewise pursue one of roughly two-dozen potential Missouri sports betting licenses.

The broader array of Show Me State wagering alternatives could attract Kansas wagerers in the Kansas City metro area to Missouri to place bets, reversing years of bettor traffic going the opposite direction. This could accelerate if the Sunflower State cuts its sportsbook roster, especially if DraftKings and/or FanDuel can no longer accept bets.

Missouri citizens in the Kansas City metro were the most ardent advocates of the sports betting ballot procedure, which might highlight locals’ interest in placing bets in their home state as soon as books go live.

Missouri’s sports wagering lineup doubts ahead of the 2025 launch. Kansas’ sportsbooks might change too in the occurring years.