The Florida tribal compact sports betting case is moving forward in the U.S. Court of Appeals, which recently issued a schedule for briefs. The state’s opening briefs are set for August 17; the response from plaintiff West Flagler will be October 6; then the state’s reply brief will occur on November 14. Dates of oral arguments from both sides following the briefs have not been scheduled, but will take place in 2023.
The saga of sports betting in Florida began in summer 2021 when the state approved a 30-year gaming compact granting the Seminole Tribe exclusive retail and online sports betting rights in the state. But in November 2021, the compact was thrown out by U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich, who ruled that including online sports betting in the compact violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
Florida filed several appeals of Friedrich’s decision and so did the Seminole Tribe and the U.S. Department of the Interior; all are slowly moving through the U.S. Court of Appeals.
FanDuel and DraftKings also financed an initiative to place sports betting on the November 2022 general election ballot, but petitioners did not gather the required number of verified signatures. If the issue had reached
the ballot, Florida voters could have approved or denied a motion to legalize sports and event betting at professional sports venues and parimutuel facilities. The ballot issue also would have allowed qualified sportsbooks and Native American tribes with a gaming compact to offer online sports wagering.
Under the law, sports betting tax revenue would have been directed to a state education trust fund.
The bottom line is that online sports betting in Florida is unlikely to be available for several years, unless one of the appeals succeeds. The soonest Florida online sports betting could launch is sometime in 2025 if a citizen’s petition drive is approved in 2024.
Retail sports betting could be legalized if it’s included in a new gaming compact with the Seminoles. However, it would exclude online sports wagering and limit retail sportsbooks to casinos owned by the tribe.
