Missouri sports betting is coming by the end of 2025 after voters passed an amendment to legalize retail and online sports wagering. We cover the latest updates on Missouri sportsbooks ahead of their launch.
Is MO Sports Betting Legal? | Legal, but not live |
Latest Update | Votes certified in Missouri |
Expected Launch Date | Before Dec. 1, 2025 |
Expected MO Sportsbooks | FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars, ESPN BET, bet365, Bally Bet |
MO Population | 6.15M |
After voters passed Constitutional Amendment 2, online sportsbooks and retail betting in Missouri will go live no later than Dec. 1, 2025. The Sports Betting Initiative amendment was on Missouri's November 5, 2024, ballot after hundreds of thousands of petitioners lobbied to add it.
Until now, only social casinos and daily fantasy gaming had been allowed in Missouri. Bettors who wanted to place a wager would have to travel to neighboring Kansas, Illinois, or Iowa.
Missouri sports betting was passed on Nov. 5, 2024, when voters approved Amendment 2. Results were officially certified on Dec. 5, though there is a 20-day window for any group to request a recount given the small margin of victory.
However, state officials are not anticipating a request.
The state constitution of Missouri previously only made provisions for pari-mutuel horse racing betting. Amendment 2 was introduced to change the constitution to allow online and retail sports betting.
The amendment directs the Missouri Gaming Commission to oversee sports betting in the state and requires it to go live by Dec. 1, 2025, at the latest. The initiative sets the tax rate on sports betting operators at 10%, reportedly funding public education.
The amendment faced some brief legal challenges, which alleged that the signatures were not collected constitutionally. Proposed petitions must receive signatures from 8% of legal voters in six congressional districts to make the ballot in Missouri. The Cole County Circuit Court lawsuit argued that the proposal didn’t use newly redrawn districts following the 2020 U.S. Census, so it wouldn’t have met the required number of signatures.
However, that lawsuit was dismissed within a few weeks, and the proposal was added to the ballot.
Under Amendment 2, 14 sports betting licenses would be allowed.
Six pro sports teams in Missouri would have the chance to partner with a mobile betting provider. Meanwhile, Caesars Entertainment, Bally's, Boyd Gaming, and Century Casinos would be expected to get one skin per casino they operate in MO.
Two "untethered" licenses would also be available.
The Missouri Gaming Commission will formalize licensing requirements and grant licenses through an application process.
You will be able to bet on sports in Missouri no later than Dec. 1, 2025. That is the deadline set by Amendment 2.
However, Missouri sports betting insiders predict it will likely launch by the summer of 2025.
It remains to be seen where you'll be allowed to bet. The Missouri Gaming Commission has not announced an application process or a list of applicants. We expect FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars, ESPN BET, bet365, and Bally Bet to apply for licenses due to their pre-existing relationships in Missouri.
The sports wagering legislation introduced is essentially the same as that in surrounding states. For revenue data, you can look at these legal betting states as proxies.
In 2020, people bet about $2 billion in Illinois, resulting in $57 million in tax revenue for the fiscal year. Missouri has half the population, and the tax structure would not be identical, but the potential revenue is considerable.
Let's have a look at what's happening in similar states:
Because of existing relationships, we can project the operators with presences in Missouri. At present, you can legally wager at over a dozen licensed casinos. Some companies that own casinos in Missouri also own sports betting platforms.
As soon as legal online sports betting is launched, you will be able to place bets through mobile sports betting apps. All operators offer them for both Android and iOS operating systems.
Why FanDuel could be coming to Missouri: FanDuel contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Winning for Missouri Education’s political action committee to get sports betting on 2024’s ballot. It stands to reason that FanDuel would be eager to apply for a sports betting license when the time comes.
Given its familiarity and reputation in other states, FanDuel Missouri will likely be able to negotiate a deal with one of the casinos that will receive sports betting licenses.
Why DraftKings could be coming to Missouri: DraftKings also contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Winning for Missouri Education’s PAC in early 2024. Expect DraftKings Missouri to launch, too.
DraftKings has enjoyed the same advantage that has helped FanDuel capture a significant market share. The sports betting site can be accessed from the daily fantasy sports side and vice versa. It is a strong product that will be familiar to DFS users.
Why BetMGM could be coming to Missouri: BetMGM Missouri essentially already has market access, thanks to its relationship with the Kansas City Chiefs. BetMGM is the Kansas City Chiefs' official sports betting partner. The team has been vocal in supporting legalized sports betting in Missouri. Team president Mark Donovan signed a full-page ad in the Kansas City Star urging voters to approve the ballot initiative.
MGM Resorts International is a heavy hitter in the hospitality industry and will probably be awarded a license.
Why Caesars could be coming to Missouri: Caesars Entertainment owns several casinos in Missouri already, including Isle of Capri Boonville Casino and Horseshoe St. Louis. It would make sense for Caesars Sportsbook Missouri to launch an online sportsbook here. It remains to be seen what kind of impact Caesars' support for the Winning for Missouri education’s opposition campaign will have.
The Caesars brand is synonymous with upscale luxury, and the online sportsbook continues that theme, consistently offering one of the highest sign-up bonuses in the business.
Why ESPN BET could be coming to Missouri: PENN Entertainment already owns several casinos in Missouri, including Hollywood Casino & Hotel St. Louis and River City Casino & Hotel. ESPN BET has recently started increasing its retail footprint, and ESPN BET Missouri's expansion will continue that trend.
Why bet365 could be coming to Missouri: bet365 has a sports betting partnership with Century Casinos, which already has two casinos in Missouri. Those include Century Casino & Hotel Cape Girardeau and Century Casino & Hotel Caruthersville. Brick-and-mortar casinos in Missouri are expected to be awarded sports betting licenses, which would grant bet365 Missouri de facto market access.
We could even see bet365 expand into U.S. retail sportsbook spaces in these casinos in the future.
Why Bally Bet could be coming to Missouri: Bally Bet is the online sportsbook arm of the Bally's Corporation, which operates the Bally's Kansas City Casino. Brick-and-mortar casinos are expected to be awarded licenses to partner with online sports betting licenses, which could give Bally Bet de facto market access.
Bally Bet already operates in Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia.
Why BetRivers could be coming to Missouri: Rush Street Interactive CEO Richard Schwartz hinted at it. While speaking at the fourth annual Needham Consumer Tech and Ecommerce Conference, Schwartz said the company, which owns the BetRivers Sportsbook product, is preparing for the launch of Missouri sports betting.
It's just a small indication at this point, but BetRivers already has a strong betting presence in several Midwest states, including Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, and Illinois.
Pre-launch offers usually revolve around the sign-up bonus offered after sites go live. Missouri sports betting sites will offer bonus bets, deposit match welcome bonuses, and other first-bet bonuses. Sites often advertise special events like the Super Bowl and March Madness to hype up bettors.
Many sites have loyalty programs that allow you to generate points or credits based on the play volume. You can move up the tier ladder and earn better rewards if you wager consistently on a particular site.
Before you bet on a particular site to rack up credits, you should look at the matter from another angle. You can snag a bonus every time you open a new account and make your first bet. Why limit yourself to one when more bonus money is on the table?
All these operators accept credit cards, so state-of-the-art encryption methods are utilized. You can rest assured that your sensitive information will be safe and secure at licensed sportsbooks.
We have given you a rundown of the top Missouri sportsbooks that will likely be up and running when online gambling in Missouri is legal. These companies with unlimited resources have highly competent people designing and maintaining their web presence.
All the sites are intuitive and user-friendly, so you will immediately understand how to make your bets. The aesthetics are a matter of taste, but they all have their appeal in one way or another. You will find that the user experience is quite positive under most circumstances.
There is more than one reason to open multiple sports betting accounts. The odds offered at each operator are not the same for every market. When you have several accounts, you can shop around for the best odds for the bet you want to make at any given time.
It’s a win-win situation because you get the sign-up bonuses and learn about new promo offers. Over a large sample size, if you always get favorable odds, it will make a difference in your bottom line.
Customer service is another matter. The quality of the assistance you receive will vary, and the individual agent you communicate with is part of the equation.
These are very profitable, publicly traded companies, so you can expect to be treated fairly at all the licensed sportsbooks. You no longer have to roll the dice with sketchy offshore sportsbooks that operate in a gray area with no regulatory oversight.
Signing up with and using Missouri sportsbooks will be easy. I'll explain what to expect during the sign-up process and betting markets to explore.
Missouri sports betting sites will use geolocation software to pinpoint your location when you sign up, and you must be in the state at the time.
After successfully opening the account, you must still be in the state when you make wagers.
Pre-registration should be offered for Missouri sports betting sites. As we have touched upon, we will monitor the situation and pass along the online sportsbook promo codes when pre-registration becomes available.
These are the types of bets that will be available to Missouri residents:
Following the national trend, NFL and college football will undoubtedly be Missouri's most significant betting markets. Bettors will be able to wager on the three-time Super Bowl champion Chiefs in Missouri for the first time. You can expect the best NFL betting sites to flock to Missouri once the market is live.
Super Bowl betting is unique because you can make proposition bets unrelated to the game on the field. Can you guess the color of the Gatorade that will be poured on the head of the winning coach, for example?
It remains to be seen what Missouri’s college sports betting regulations will be like. Before using college football betting sites, keep tabs on the latest updates.
MLB Teams: Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals
Missouri has two MLB teams with fervent fanbases: the Royals and the Cardinals. As such, you’ll see the best MLB betting sites launch in the Show Me State. Some may even have special seasonal MLB promotions or partnerships within their stadiums.
Though the U.S. is not typically known for a love of soccer, Missouri might be a rare exception, with three professional teams calling the state home. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes is a part owner of Sporting KC and the Kansas City Current (his wife, Brittany, is also a part owner of the latter).
You should explore the best soccer betting sites once the market goes live.
NHL Teams: St. Louis Blues
Missouri fans love their hockey—and they love the Blues. In 2019, St. Louis won its first and only Stanley Cup.
Expect NHL betting sites to be particularly popular in Missouri.
On June 10, 2016, then-Governor Jay Nixon signed House Bill 1941 to legalize DFS sites.
This is a list of the operators that the Missouri Gaming Commission has licensed: PrizePicks, DraftKings, FanDuel, FastDraft, Fantasy Football Players Championship, OwnersBox, RealTime Fantasy Sports, CDM Sports, Underdog Sports, Yahoo Fantasy Sports, Fanball, StatHero.
Horse racing betting sites have been legal under 313.660 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri, but only within the confines of a licensed racetrack. The only problem is that Missouri has no tracks, and online sports betting platforms cannot accept MO residents.
There are already 13 casinos operating in Missouri, which offer table games, slots, restaurants and bars, and live entertainment.
Casino | City | Parent Company |
---|---|---|
Argosy | Riverside | PENN Entertainment |
Harrah's Kansas City | Kansas City | Caesars Entertainment |
Bally's Kansas City | Kansas City | Bally's |
Ameristar Kansas City | Kansas City | Boyd Gaming |
Isle of Capri Boonville | Boonville | Caesars Entertainment |
Horseshoe St. Louis | St. Louis | Caesars Entertainment |
River City | Lemay | PENN Entertainment |
Hollywood Casino St. Louis | St. Louis | PENN Entertainment |
Ameristar St. Charles | St. Charles | Boyd Gaming |
Mark Twain Casino | LaGrange | Affinity Gaming |
St. Jo Frontier Casino | St. Joseph | Affinity Gaming |
Century Casino & Hotel Caruthersville | Caruthersville | Century Casinos |
Century Casino & Hotel Cape Girardeau | Cape Girardeau | Century Casinos |
Even though sports betting isn’t legal in Missouri yet, the state already has a strong commitment to responsible gambling practices, thanks to its casinos. Missouri casinos follow the American Gaming Association’s Responsible Gaming Code of Conduct, which pledges to prevent underage gambling, serve alcohol responsibly, advertise responsibly, and provide oversight.
You can sign up for Missouri’s voluntary List of Disassociated Persons (also known as the Problem Gambling list) online or in person.
You can contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline any time: