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- Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) met with tribal leaders for the first time earlier this month to begin gaming compact negotiations
- Evers signed AB 601 into law in April, giving Wisconsin tribes control over the state’s online sports betting market
- The Wisconsin governor must approve any changes to tribal gaming compacts, but Evers’ term will end this January
Gov. Tony Evers (D) reportedly met with tribal leaders earlier this month to begin negotiations for Wisconsin online sports betting amendments to tribal gaming compacts, but it is unknown if the negotiations will be completed before Evers leaves office.
According to a report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Evers met with tribal leaders to begin gaming compact negotiations on June 1. Evers signed Rep. Tyler August’s bill, AB 601, into law in April, which allows the 11 Wisconsin tribes to amend their gaming compacts and offer online sports betting in the state. However, any gaming compact amendments must first be approved by the Wisconsin governor prior to being sent to the federal government for final approval.
While Evers has shown a willingness to allow tribes to lead online sports betting in the state, he has already informed constituents that he will not seek reelection and will end his gubernatorial term on Jan. 4, 2027.
Will Compact Amendments Be Completed Before January?
The approved bill allows Wisconsin tribes to offer online sports betting through a “hub-and-spoke system,” which is is the same methodology used by the Seminole Tribe to legalize online sports betting in Florida. The tribe began offering online sports betting in the state in 2021, arguing that since its servers were located on its tribal land, any bet placed in the state and processed through the device were technically made on tribal land.
As long as a Wisconsin tribe has an approved gaming compact with the U.S. Department of the Interior that allows sports betting, and processes sports bets through a server on its tribal land, online sports betting will be legal.
Tribes will have to renegotiate their gaming compacts to offer online sports betting through their own platforms or through partnerships with sports betting companies. The renegotiated compacts will have to be approved by the federal government.
Negotiations among tribes and the state can take anywhere from several months to over a year to be completed.
While the bill is now law, Evers said the tribes must work together to “shape the future of sports betting in Wisconsin.”
“What I will not accept is a plan that fractures this opportunity into unequal pieces, allowing some Tribes to reap great benefits while leaving only crumbs for others. An approach that exacerbates long-standing inequalities among Tribal Nations is not good for Wisconsinites or Wisconsin. I will not entertain it as governor,” he said in a released statement.
Evers has started negotiations, but according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel the June 1 meeting was just the first of many needed to reach an agreements on gaming compact amendments for state tribes. Evers and Wisconsin tribes will have until January to complete any amendments to the tribal gaming compacts before Wisconsin welcomes a new governor into the fold.
Wisconsin voters will take to the polls in November to elect the state’s next governor. The democratic ticket is crowded, with seven candidates vying for the nomination, while U.S. Rep Tom Tiffany (WI-07) is the only legitimate republican candidate so far.
Who is Eligible For Wisconsin Sports Betting?
Tribes will lead the Wisconsin online sports betting market, but it remains to be seen if there will be room for any major sports betting operators.
The bill’s revenue framework may not make Wisconsin an attractive market for the country’s largest sports betting operators. Any sports betting company operating in Wisconsin will be required to provide 60% of their revenues to their tribal partners.
During a public hearing for the bill this past fall, Damon Stewart, counsel for the Sports Betting Alliance, reported if Wisconsin legalizes online sports betting through the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) and the proposed hub-and-spoke model, the market will not be economically viable for operators to enter.
Stewart, speaking on behalf of the Sports Betting Alliance, said major sports betting operators likely would not participate in Wisconsin’s sports betting market if required to provide the majority of revenues to their tribal partners.
However, in late February FanDuel and DraftKings both agreed to casino partnerships in Arkansas which will allow their entry into the state. Arkansas has a similar revenue framework as Wisconsin, which requires operators to provide 51% of their revenues to their casino partners. Their willingness to enter into Arkansas may also eventually lead to their entry into Wisconsin as well, which should prove to be a larger sports betting market than the Natural State.
The Arkansas Racing & Gaming Commission approved both FanDuel and DraftKings applications for sports betting vendor licenses, allowing FanDuel to partner with Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort and DraftKings with Southland Casino.
Both companies will act as vendors for the casinos and offer online sports betting on their behalf.