About Me

Missouri Sports Betting Launch might Come Before Kansas Sportsbook Changes

Missouri sports bettors have crossed into Kansas for nearly 3 years to position legal sports betting bets. Three years from now, Kansas locals may do the very same.

Key takeaways

- Kansas lawmakers stopped brand-new sportsbook license extensions until 2026, meaning possible regulatory modifications that could impact its 6 legal operators after 2027.

- Missouri is set to launch legal mobile sportsbooks in late 2025, possibly reversing cross-border wagering trends as Kansas wagerers might head east.

- Future changes in Kansas might consist of a sole-operator model or tax hikes, impacting competitors and motivating wagerers to seek alternatives in Missouri.

Kansas sports background

Kansas launched its first legal mobile sportsbooks in 2022. Six books now take bets: BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, ESPN BET, Fanatics and FanDuel.

The ability to position legal bets in Kansas brings in bettors on the Missouri side of the Kansas City city location to Kansas to wager, with some doing so most or nearly every day of the week.

That could change if Kansas lawmakers overthrow the current regulative structure. Sources inform Covers some lawmakers want to increase the state's sports betting tax profits, among the most affordable per capita of any of the 30 states with statewide legal mobile sportsbooks.

Kansas' most likely reconsideration of its six-book legal sports betting market next year will follow Missouri goes cope with as lots of as a lots books; if Kansas considerably curtails its offerings, it might lead KS wagerers to put bets in MO, the reverse of the current pattern

The changes might be as basic as a tax increase. It might also result in a sole-source operator design some legislators are considering, one that could produce more direct profits for the state but possibly force out some or all of the six existing sportsbooks when their licenses expire in Aug. 2027.

The legislation passed previously this month only positions a restriction until 2026, indicating Kansas' existing sportsbooks can take bets till their licenses end the list below year. Lawmakers might not even think about a dramatic change to the regulatory structure when they reconvene for sports betting the 2026 session, suggesting no perceptible effect for Sunflower State gamblers.

But the license extension prohibition leaves the possibility for significant changes that didn't seem practical weeks earlier.

Missouri sportsbooks prepare to release

The Kansas move comes as Missouri nears the launch of its legal sportsbooks.

Missouri's multi-year sports betting legalization push ended in Nov. 2024, when voters directly authorized a ballot procedure to bring legal retail and online sportsbooks to the state. The vote followed years of failed efforts to legislate sports wagering in the legislature.

Missouri's legal sportsbooks are set to begin taking bets in the fourth quarter of 2025. There are also set to be almost twice as many wagering options in Missouri as Kansas.

FanDuel and DraftKings contributed more than $30 million to support the tally procedure. The two U.S. market share leaders have, as anticipated, revealed plans to take bets in Missouri as soon as certified.

Other books consisting of BetMGM, BetRivers and Underdog also revealed launch plans. Bet365 struck an offer with MLB's St. Louis Cardinals and also prepares to accept bets in the state.

Caesars, which opposed the tally procedure over license allotment concerns, runs three Missouri casinos and is eligible to introduce its online book in the state. Penn Entertainment (ESPN BET) and Bally's (Bally Bet) also operate Missouri casinos that give them instant market access.

Other books including Acid rock, live in Illinois, might also pursue one of roughly two-dozen prospective Missouri sports betting wagering licenses.

The broader variety of Show Me State betting choices could attract Kansas wagerers in the Kansas City city location to Missouri to put bets, reversing years of bettor traffic going the opposite instructions. This could accelerate if the Sunflower State curtails its sportsbook lineup, especially if DraftKings and/or FanDuel can no longer accept bets.

Missouri voters in the Kansas City metro were the most ardent advocates of the sports betting wagering tally measure, which could highlight homeowners' interest in placing bets in their home state when books go live.

Missouri's sports wagering lineup doubts ahead of the 2025 launch. Kansas' sportsbooks might change too in the taking place years.