The launch of mobile sports betting in Missouri is scheduled for December 1st, 2025, but four sportsbooks have already applied for licenses, and one may surprise you.
Betting Quartet
Getting sports betting to the finish line in Missouri took millions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of signatures to circumvent a gridlocked legislature and put the referendum on last November’s ballot.
The initiative was a collaborative effort between the six professional sports franchises, two of the major online sportsbooks, FanDuel and DraftKings, as well as the political action committee, Winning for Missouri Education, that was tasked with collecting over 180,000 signatures to send to the Secretary of State’s office to get the question on the ballot. The measure was narrowly approved by the voters.
Therefore, the application for a sports betting license by FanDuel and DraftKings was predictable, and Underdog Sports has become proactive throughout the national sports betting markets. Yet, there is also a fourth applicant, Circa, that hopes to include Missouri as its sixth market, joining Nevada, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, and Kentucky.
Circa has been deliberate in focusing on low-tax states, with Illinois becoming an exception, which is why Missouri’s 10% tax rate on adjusted gross revenues was desirable.
“Missouri is a great environment in the Midwest with fantastic gambling, low taxes, and reasonable market access,” Circa Director of Operations Jeff Benson said. “Being able to get an untethered license would be awesome and allow us to expand our brand in a state that could really help us grow. We are simply looking for the states with the best remote registration and remote funding capabilities, and [Missouri] qualifies.”
Untethered Licenses
There are two untethered licenses available in Missouri, and it is clear that FanDuel and DraftKings want them after spending millions of dollars to fund the PAC and promote mobile sports betting as a way to generate funds for the state’s school system—thus, Winning for Missouri Education was born.
Untethered licenses mean the sportsbook does not have to partner and share part of its revenue with a casino in the state or one of the six professional sports teams located in Missouri. The Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC) will review applications and hear from the sportsbooks on August 13th before awarding both untethered licenses on August 15th.
As for the tethered licenses, there are 13 casinos in the state and six professional sports franchises, including the St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, St. Louis SC, Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, and Kansas City Current. Therefore, there are 19 potential partners for sportsbooks that wish to gain access to the Missouri sports betting market using a tethered license.
There are already partnerships formed in anticipation of the December 1st launch, like BetMGM and Century Casino & Hotel Cape Girardeau’s agreement, while Bet365 has teamed up with the St. Louis Cardinals.
