Kansas sports betting will launch in time for bettors to see the full NFL season.
The Kansas Lottery announced Thursday that KS sports betting will begin Sept. 1 with a soft launch. A full launch will follow on Sept. 8, pending a few regulatory checkmarks.
The launch date means a full season of NFL betting would be available to Kansas bettors. After the legislation passed in April, Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission Director of Wagering Todd Allen told LSR he expected sports betting to be up and running by the football season.
“This announcement represents a lot of hard work and collaboration between the Kansas Lottery, the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission, our casino and tribal partners,” Kansas Lottery Executive Director Stephen Durrell said in the announcement. “The process to bring this to fruition has moved at an unbelievable pace. We are excited to be bringing sports betting to Kansas players and adding more fun and exciting play options to the Sunflower State.”
Kansas Lottery makes quick work
Despite Allen’s comments last month, the KRGC took up and approved regulations at its August 12 meeting. From there, it was up to the Lottery and its casino operators to sign contracts prior to launch.
The KRGC and Lottery have a long history of working together, which likely helped expedite the process.
“We’ve got some good relationships established with them and those make it go a lot smoother,” Allen said earlier this month of the KRGC relationship with casino operators.
Kansas sports betting operators
The Kansas Lottery owns the four casinos in the state, each of which can partner with up to three online sportsbooks. Boothill Casino announced its deals with Bally Bet and DraftKings earlier this year.
Kansas Crossing has partnerships with PointsBet and Caesars Sportsbook. BetMGM, which has rolled out a pre-launch promo, and FanDuel lined up access through Boyd Gaming operation of Kansas Star Casino.
A Penn Entertainment-operated Hollywood Casino gives Barstool Sportsbook access to the state. Barstool was recently added to the name of the Sept. 11 NASCAR race at Kansas Speedway, next to the casino.
Quick pace to launch in Kansas
Kansas will be one of the quickest states to launch sports betting following legalization. Gov. Laura Kelly signed the legislation in May following a last-minute deal in the legislature.
“Legalizing sports betting is a common-sense solution that keeps Kansans’ money in Kansas and drives business to sporting events, casinos, restaurants, and other entertainment venues,” Kelly said in a release Thursday. “I want to thank all our partners for working with us to get this done in time for football season.”
Last year, Arizona and Wyoming both legalized in the spring and were up and running with online sports betting by the NFL season. While Kansas is ready to roll with football season, Maryland is still waiting for online sports betting following legalization in spring 2021.
