Approved Kansas Sports Betting Rules Move State Closer To Launch


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Kansas sports betting

The race to launch Kansas sports betting before the NFL season took a positive step Friday.

The Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission approved KS sports betting regulations at its meeting Friday. The regulations now move on to Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt.

Earlier this month, KRGC Director of Wagering Todd Allen told LSR that launching for NFL betting at the beginning of the season would be tight. The commission, however, did its part to launch by the Sept. 8 kickoff.

“We don’t have control over the start date, there are a lot of different moving parts and different agencies involved and different players,” KRGC Chairman David Moses said, per KSHB. “We’ve done what we need to do to get this moving to try to meet the start date of the NFL football regular season.”

Next steps for Kansas sports betting

The process to launch sports betting in Kansas has been relatively quick since Gov. Laura Kelly signed enacting legislation in May. The law went into effect July 1, and the KRGC was off and running developing the rules.

Schmidt now needs to sign off on the regulations, which Allen said will be sent to him this week. After that, it is up to the Kansas Lottery and its casinos, which are the access points for mobile operators in Kansas.

The casino managers need to sign contracts for KS sports betting with the lottery. The four casinos can partner with up to three mobile sportsbook operators each.

CasinoOperatorSportsbook SportsbookSportsbook
Hollywood CasinoPenn NationalBarstool
Kansas Star CasinoBoyd GamingFanDuel
Boot Hill Casino & ResortBoot Hill GamingDraftKingsBally BetGolden Nugget
Kansas Crossing CasinoPeninsula Pacific Ent.PointsBetCaesarsBetMGM

Missouri still sore losers

Quinton Lucas, mayor of Kansas City, MO, tweeted, “It’s so dumb we don’t have this yet,” when KHSB reporter Dan Cohen tweeted about the commission meeting.

During the spring legislative season, legislators from Missouri and Kansas traded barbs about which state could launch sports betting first. Missouri lawmakers ultimately did not pass sports betting legislation.

Missouri Sen. Denny Hoskins told LSR this summer that the prospects of legalizing sports betting look promising heading into next year.