Missouri bettors’ long wait is over, with eight online sportsbooks and multiple in-person books going live across the state Monday after a razor-thin 2024 ballot win broke years of legislative gridlock to legalise sports betting.
It is the first major online launch since March 2024 and operators large and small are hopeful it can provide a fruitful expansion to the US sports betting market as the online gambling industry continues to evolve.
“This is an important launch for BetMGM and the broader industry,” said Matt Prevost, BetMGM chief revenue officer. “For us, it marks our 30th launch since we started in 2018 and also tips us into serving an addressable market of 50% of the adult US population.
“We have thousands of existing customers in the state, as they have travelled to the border states of Kansas, Illinois and Kentucky to engage with BetMGM.”
BetMGM launched online Monday morning and opened its BetMGM Sportsbook at the Century Casino & Hotel Cape Girardeau. The sportsbook is partnered with the Kansas City Chiefs.
While some of BetMGM’s competitors are launching prediction markets and will be able to use that product to capture more customers, even in states where sports betting is not legal, Prevost believes there is plenty of sustainable sports betting growth ahead. DraftKings, FanDuel and Underdog are all in the process of deploying prediction markets, and Underdog pulled out of the Missouri launch process to do so despite having received a licence.
Prevost cited Grand View Research data that projects 10.9% to 12.2% compound annual sports betting growth rate and a projected US market of more than $33 billion by 2030.
“We believe that this is a healthy, sustainable growth rate and the presence of prediction markets might actually increase the rate of adoption of legislation to promote regulated gaming in US states,” he said.
Circa treads new territory
In August, Missouri regulators awarded Circa, a niche brand which is now in six states, with one of the two untethered sports betting licences available. The other went to DraftKings, one of the two US market leaders.
Circa prides itself on going after different bettors than major sportsbooks by advertising high limits and “player-friendly pricing”. Circa founder Derek Stevens told the Missouri Gaming Commission the sportsbook’s hold is approximately 3.5% compared to the national companies, which hold around 10%. The lower hold means less revenue for the operator.
That approach to attract different customers was enough for the MGC to award the licence to Circa.
Circa Director of Operations Jeff Benson said the untethered licence is helpful for the sportsbook as it allows entry with just the $500,000 licence fee, not extra market entry deals and revenue share with casino or sports team partners.
“It allows us to offer a more competitive product to users,” Benson said. “As many [options as possible] leads to competition, which breeds better bonuses and comps.”
Benson said the untethered licence alone likely will not help gain market share, but a new app with added user friendliness could help. It will also help free up some costs for marketing or ancillary spends that could boost handle and revenue.
Benson said the four other launches outside its home state of Nevada have helped shape this rollout.
“We’ve continued to get better each and every time,” he said. “Whether that’s deal points we get, figuring out how to tailor our marketing efforts or boots on the ground, there’s a number of things we looked at to figure out and get better.”
DraftKings goes big with party
The other untethered licence holder, DraftKings, held a party highlighted by Missouri sports legends for its launch at The Palladium, an event space in St Louis.
Former St Louis Rams receiver Isaac Bruce, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez and St Louis Blues forward Brett Hull placed the first bets on DraftKings. Missouri House Speaker Jon Patterson was also at the DraftKings launch party.
“DraftKings is built for passionate sports fans, making Missouri an exciting jurisdiction for us to enter with its rich sports culture and several professional teams across the state,” DraftKings Chief Revenue Officer Greg Karamitis said. “This is an incredible time of year for sports fans with NFL, NBA, NHL, college football and college basketball all in-season, and we look forward to elevating the experience for Missouri sports fans, responsibly, with our top-rated online sportsbook.”
Fanatics rolled out its own Missouri sports star, former Kansas City Royals outfielder Alex Gordon, to place the first bet at the brand’s in-person sportsbook at Ameristar Casino Hotel Kansas City. Fanatics also has an in-person sportsbook at Ameristar Casino Resort Spa St Charles.
FanDuel, which applied unsuccessfully for an untethered licence, enters the state through a deal with St Louis City FC. FanDuel announced a $300,000 donation to Guns ‘N Hoses, a St.Louis first responders nonprofit organisation. It also announced a $300,000 donation to the Veterans Community Project in Kansas City.
Bet365’s key Missouri sports betting partner
Bet365 enters the Missouri market partnered with the St Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals were a key cog in the process that legalised sports betting. Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III helped launch the ballot initiative in 2024.
“We’re thrilled to bring our world-class mobile sports betting experience to Missouri and to partner with one of Major League Baseball’s most storied franchises,” said Trip Stoddard, Bet365 head of development. “Missouri has a passionate sports community, and we think fans will love Bet365’s unique betting features and industry-leading odds.”
It is the 16th US state for Bet365.
Ceasars, Penn go live in casinos
Ceasars and Penn Entertainment each operate casinos in Missouri. Their online brands have licences through the land-based casinos.
For Penn, it marks the switchover from ESPN Bet to theScore Bet, which was announced last month. Customers who previously downloaded ESPN Bet will see it update automatically to theScore Bet. Penn opened in-person theScore Bet sportsbooks at River City Casino and Hollywood Casino.
Along with its app, Caesars launched its in-person sportsbooks at Harrah’s Kansas City and Horseshoe St Louis. Harrah’s hosted a party on Monday morning with former Kansas City Chiefs star Christian Okoye. Former Chiefs and St Louis Rams quarterback Trent Green began the day at Horseshoe, but he made a stop at Harrah’s and Isle of Capri Boonville.
“Caesars Sportsbook is proud to deliver a premier sports wagering experience to Missouri and a special promotion that’s true to the experience sports fans in the state should come to expect,” Caesars Digital President Eric Hession said in a release. “From our intuitive mobile app to our in-person sportsbooks at Harrah’s Kansas City and Horseshoe St Louis, we’re committed to providing a secure and responsible way for fans to engage with the sports they love.”
Long and winding road to Missouri sports betting
There have been multiple legislative attempts over the past five years to legalise sports betting in Missouri. Senator Denny Hoskins played foil each year, filibustering the legislation in hopes of adding language to legalise video lottery terminals in the state.
Eventually, the professional sports teams launched a ballot initiative to go around the legislature. It gained enough signatures with millions of dollars from FanDuel and DraftKings.
The ballot push also had to survive a legal battle that pit major industry players against one another.
Once on the ballot, it barely passed with 50.05% of the votes.
That same election elevated Hoskins to secretary of state, a position in which he denied emergency rules for sports betting. If emergency rules had been permitted, the MGC hoped for a summer 2025 launch.
Instead, the MGC settled on Monday’s launch date.
The state has a 10% tax rate on sports betting revenue, which is lower than in most states. The majority of proceeds will be used to fund public education in the state, with a portion also allocated to responsible gambling awareness and treatment programmes.
Missouri sports betting is officially live, with eight online sportsbooks launching statewide Monday.