Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas all have mobile sports betting in place as part of a mix of 21 states. But it leaves Mississippi out of the mix with no legal mobile sports betting revenue. As a result, sports betting revenue has declined 20 percent, said Jay McDaniel, executive director of Mississippi Gaming Commission, according to WLBT.
Remember also, Mississippi is home to 26 casinos serving tourist areas, and the casinos opposed any legislation that allows folks to place bets in their homes and not have to visit a casino to do so.
“We talked about behind closed doors, it’s really because it hasn’t gotten to the floor, it hasn’t gotten into a committee discussion. If we get to that point, there may be a time where we come in and give our perspective on it,” said McDaniel.
As of right now, the only way to legally place mobile wagers in state casinos is by using the BetMGM sportsbook app. The catch is, you must be on the premises of either the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi or the Goldstrike Casino in Tunica, Mississippi.
“With that statute, it would depend on how the legislature structures it,” he said. “Would it be open to every casino operator to put their own app out there? Would it be limited to a certain number? I don’t think in any realm would we just see BetMGM they have theirs ready, but I think if you saw a bill start to pass, there would be time for these other operators to get theirs ready.”
