Florida’s Sports Betting Debate Heads to Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court is considering a legal tussle about the Seminole Tribe of Florida’s permission for statewide online sports betting. After Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily stalled an appeals court ruling, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar responded, supporting the decision’s continuation. This appeal ruling had the potential to pave the way for sports betting in the state.

This temporary stop by Roberts occurred when pari-mutuel firms West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corp. intended to challenge the ruling. These companies had earlier filed a lawsuit post Florida officials approving a gambling agreement, called a compact, signed between Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Seminole Tribe Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr.

The compact grants the Seminole Tribe exclusive rights to sports betting in Florida for 30 years. Additionally, it permits adding roulette and craps in tribal casinos. The Tribe will pay Florida a minimum of $2.5 billion in the first five years. Remarkably, the compact even allows specific properties, including Trump National Doral Resort and the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach, to obtain casino permits.

The crux of the lawsuit focuses on allowing statewide mobile sports betting, handled by tribal servers. Pari-mutuel companies argue this circumvents a 2018 amendment needing voter assent for casino gambling in the state. After U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich sided with the pari-mutuels in 2021, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned it in summer, prompting these firms to approach the Supreme Court.

In her response, Prelogar emphasized that the appeals court rightly concluded that the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) oversees gaming only on Indian lands. She mentioned the Florida compact aligns with IGRA, stating a compact can address issues outside tribal regions. Prelogar also highlighted a separate case filed by pari-mutuel firms in the Florida Supreme Court over the sports betting scheme, suggesting it as the ideal forum for such state law interpretations.

Last year, the Seminoles introduced the Hard Rock sports betting platform, which was operational for a month before a court injunction ceased its operations.