Florida State’s football is coming closer, and the state is ready to implement sports betting. The state has signed a gaming compact with the Seminole tribe. This compact will legalize sports betting all over the state.
The compact negotiations were led by the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis. The compact gives the Seminole tribe exclusive rights to operate gambling facilities for roulette, craps, and sports betting.
The compact was approved by a vote in the Florida legislature and has recently been approved by the US Department of Interior. So, Florida is now looking to get its legal sports wagering system operational in the state by October to November this year.
At present, the rules of the compact state that for the first five years, the Seminole Tribe will pay the state of Florida at least $500 million annually, and after those five years, the state will get a percentage of the tribe’s revenue. The compact will be valid for 30 years at once.
But some Florida representatives believe that these figures are too low, and the state could have negotiated for a larger financial income from the tribe. But other state legislators feel that the $500 million is enough and will contribute greatly to the state’s education, healthcare, and roadway network infrastructure.
Some legislators even believe that the Seminoles would never have agreed to the terms of the state if the provisions for sports betting had not been allowed to them. There was, however, a lot of controversy over sports betting deals. Some critics claimed that the introduction of sports betting was a violation of the federal law which limited all kinds of gambling to only within the tribe lands.
But Florida State is trying to avoid any legal issues by claiming that the bets from all over the state will all be processed in a central location within tribe lands. Lawsuits have already been filed against the introduction of sports betting in Florida, but the approval of the gaming compact from the US Department of Interior has made the state confident that no federal law violation is taking place.
Another problem with sports betting in Florida is a conflict between large sports betting brands like DraftKings and FanDuel that are trying to take away the exclusive sports betting privileges of the Seminole tribe. This issue may also end up in court soon.
But the discussion and debates over the future of sports betting in Florida shows that the state has a huge potential for sports wagering, which will soon be explored in the coming months.
