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Missouri players finally have a firm date for when legal sports betting kicks in. Regulators confirmed sportsbooks can begin taking wagers right after midnight on December 1.
Good to know
The Dec. 1 debut comes late in the 2025 football calendar. Bettors will catch Monday Night Football between the Giants and Patriots that same day, and the St. Louis Blues are also in action that evening.
Still, the schedule means players missed nearly all of Missouri’s college football season and most of the Kansas City Chiefs’ regular season. For many, the real football betting boom won’t arrive until 2026.
Voters approved sports betting in November 2024, but it took regulators more than a year to finalize rules around licensing, employment checks, and financial reporting. A proposed June 30 start fell through when emergency rule requests were denied, leaving Dec. 1 as the latest possible launch date under the ballot measure.
The Missouri Gaming Commission set Sept. 12 as the application deadline for operators aiming to go live on Dec. 1. Nine sportsbook brands applied, including national names like FanDuel, Caesars, ESPN BET, BetMGM, and Fanatics.
DraftKings and Circa already received approval, while others such as Underdog, known for daily fantasy pick’em, await final confirmation. Kambi, which powers BetRivers, also filed.
Players can begin funding accounts on Nov. 17, with the full go-live two weeks later. For bettors along the Illinois and Kansas borders—states that already allow mobile wagering—the long wait is nearly over.