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Legal Sports Betting Launches in Missouri For Mobile and Retail Betting
December 1 marks a turning point for sports fans in the Show Me State. Missouri launched its legal sports betting, for both online and retail sportsbooks. With Missouri added to the bunch, there are now 39 states that have legalized sports betting in one form or another. In Missouri, sports fans are getting the real thing straight from the get go. Already, DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics, and a bunch of well recognized US sportsbook brands have secured licenses.
Preregistration began on November 17 for Missourians. Bettors could download the sportsbook mobile apps, register accounts and deposit funds ahead of the highly anticipated launch. Now, they can use those funds, claim bonuses, and start picking out their wagers. Here, we will analyze the main changes, Missouri betting legislation, and then what this launch means for the greater US sports betting industry.
What Sportsbooks Are Live Now in Missouri
The Missouri Gaming Commission announced there would be 12 tethered gaming licenses for operators and 2 untethered. For the tethered licenses, that means, the sportsbooks would have to partner up with a local landbased casino or professional sports team. For Caesars and theScore Bet (the rebranded ESPN Bet by Penn Entertainment) it was straightforward as they could tether to their Caesars Entertainment and PENN casinos in Missouri, but for the rest of the applicants, they had to form deals with existing sports franchises or landbased casino venues:
- St Louis City (MLS) – FanDuel
- Kansas City Royals (MLB) – Underdog Sports
- St. Louis Cardinals (MLB) – bet365
- Boyd Gaming Ameristar Casinos – Fanatics
- Caesars Horseshoe St. Louis & Isle of Capri Boonville – Caesars Sportsbook
- PENN Casinos – theScore Bet
- Century Casinos & Kansas City Chiefs (NFL) – BetMGM
DraftKings and Circa Sports were awarded the 2 untethered licenses, meaning they don’t need to partner with any local organizations. Fortunately for operators, Missouri is not short of respected organizations and sports franchises. The Show Me State has 6 major league franchises:
- MLB: St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals
- NFL: Kansas City Chiefs
- NHL: St. Louis Blues
- MLS: St. Louis City SC
- NWSL: Kansas City Current
Not every team and casino must be used. But any sportsbook operator who wants to obtain a valid iGaming license in the state must partner with a local organization to gain entry. Choosing a business partner really depends on what model the sportsbook operators are looking for, whether they are planning to integrate retail books and launch products in conjunction with the casino partner or not. And when applying through franchises, it could mean potential sponsorship deals or other types of agreements.
Missouri Retail Sports Betting
Missouri has made both online and offline sports betting legal. It hasn’t gone down the same route as the likes of Montana, Nebraska and North Dakota. These states legalized sports betting, but limited it to retail options only. Missouri did not do that. It didn’t limit the number of books either, like Rhode Island’s legal monopoly or states like Nevada where there are only a handful of viable options.
Intriguingly enough, sports betting is legal in Nevada, but you can only join sportsbooks by creating an account in person at one of the casinos. Creating a BetMGM or Caesars betting account requires a trip to a Las Vegas Strip Casino, where you can apply in person.
No More Travelling to Kansas
Back to Missouri, the state has launched an open betting market, which allows up to 14 brands to get in on the action. The Ameristar Casino hotels are planning to launch Fanatics Sportsbook locations. Hollywood, River City and Argosy Casinos, all owned by PENN, are working on retail options for theScore Bet, creating lavish sports betting lounges with betting terminals, massive screens, and dining experiences. The Missouri Gaming Commission granted retail sportsbook licenses to 8 brick and mortar casinos across the state. In addition to this, each state’s professional sports team can establish a retail sportsbook within 400 yards of its home venue.
Important Laws to Consider in Missouri
The sports betting experience in different legal betting states can differ based on the individual state laws. Each state that legalizes sports betting reserves the rights to tax, govern, license and even define what types of products sportsbooks can provide. This is the most important aspect for Missouri bettors to take heed of, the terms and conditions.
Bettors must be 21 years or older to bet in Missouri and they can only bet within state lines, which will be verified by geolocation trackers. College sports betting is allowed, but props bets on individual college players may be restricted depending on the operator’s policy.
Operators are taxed at 10% of net revenue. Gambling winnings for players will be taxed as income, at a state rate of 5.4% if the total amount is $8,969 or higher. The player betting tax is not high, it is similar to the neighbouring state of Kansas, which has 5% withholding on gambling winnings.
How Classic Sportsbooks Are Faring in the US
It is a pretty dramatic time for Missouri to enter the legal sports betting market in the US. DFS and social sportsbooks are all the rage in the US right now, and this year has seen a remarkable rise in peer to peer betting exchanges, as well as prediction markets. Actually, prediction markets have taken to new heights since the launch of the 2025 NFL season, with the likes of Kalshi and Robinhood smashing betting records, and the return of the crypto giant Polymarket.
Penn Entertainment recently scrapped ESPN Bet, rebranding its Ontario sportsbook theScore Bet for the US market. The US betting scene is still growing, but the two juggernauts, FanDuel and DraftKings, now hold a reported 80% of the market. And they are both considering launching prediction markets. FanDuel partnered with CME Group with the hopes of launching its own prediction market, FanDuel Predicts. On the other hand, DraftKings acquired Railbird, in a bid to set itself up with a platform to make its own prediction market, DraftKings Predictions. Others, such as Underdog Fantasy and Fanatics, have also shown interest in joining the rising prediction market scene.
Missouri will be a great example for operators and lawmakers alike to watch. Prediction markets, governed federally by the CFTC, are available all across the country. But now, with legal sportsbooks hitting the shelves, it will be interesting to see whether Missouri bettors will bite and pick sportsbooks over prediction markets.
Potential Future Legalized Sports Betting Launches
Now with Missouri joining the pack, the big question is, who will be the 40th state to legalize sports betting? It definitely won’t be the likes of Hawaii, South Carolina, Utah or Idaho, where political and cultural resistance shows virtually no signs of shifting.
The main contender is Alaska, through House Bill 145, which proposes to authorize up to 10 mobile sportsbooks. The proposal was put up by Representative David Nelson in March, and will be brought to the Labor and Commerce Hearings. If it advances, Alaska may even roll out a legal sportsbook scene in 2026.
Texas and California would be the big ones to look out for. The public interest is high in Texas, but there is still a lot of political pressure and opposition to cut through. As for California, talks remain open and there have been prior proposals to examine a legal sports betting market. However, these have continuously been shot down, and it may take a few years for the Golden State to work out a good model.
Whatever the case, Missouri is a welcome addition to the growing list of legal sports betting states. If Missouri can reignite the sports betting appetite and steal players away from prediction markets, it would signal a major win for the classic sportsbooks across America.
