The Fate of Florida Sports Betting in the Hands of the Supreme Court

Online sports betting has been taking place in Florida since November 2023. But not everybody is happy about the deal that gives the Seminole Tribe control of sports betting in the state.

Attorneys for West Flagler Associates (Magic City Casino) and Bonita-Fort Myers Corporation (Bonita Springs Poker Room) asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block the deal between the tribe and the state. The future of Florida sports betting could be affected depending if the Supreme Court elects to hear the case or not.

The matter in question is the 2021 Gaming Compact between the State of Florida and the Seminole Tribe. The compact states bets made “using a mobile app or other electronic device shall be deemed to be exclusively conducted by the tribe.”

The State of Florida has good reason for wanting the deal to be allowed. The Seminole Tribe will pay the state at least $2.5 billion in the first five years of the 30-year compact. The 30-year deal is expected to be worth nearly $20 billion to the state.

After the compact was announced, West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corporation filed a federal lawsuit to prevent the compact from moving forward. The plaintiffs won the first court hearing. But the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia reversed the decision. Now the plaintiffs have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.

#FAU Expert: Online Sports Betting Could Change Florida Sports Industry #FAUNews @faubusiness @faumbasport https://t.co/0Wg2KbYlEg

— Florida Atlantic News Desk (@FAUNewsDesk) February 15, 2024

Indian Gaming Regulatory Act

From a legal standpoint, the plaintiffs have a good case due to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. IGRA gives tribes to the ability to offer certain gambling activities “on tribal lands.” At the heart of the lawsuit is the online betting provision.

It allows Florida sports betting from anywhere in the state, not just on tribal grounds. The 2021 Compact states it considers wagers placed through servers located on tribal property as being made on Tribal property. U.S. courts have disagreed with that interpretation in the past.

“Deeming the bet to have been placed on Indian lands because the servers are located there contradicts decades of well-established precedent interpreting applicable federal law,” the lawsuit reads. “Contrary to the legal fiction created by the 2021 Compact and Implementing Law, a bet is placed both where the bettor and the casino are each located.”

Florida Previously Argued the Opposite View

The State of Florida had previously argued that a bet must be placed on tribal lands for it to constitute as falling under the scope of IGRA. In an amicus brief filed in the 9th Circuit appeal in Coeur d’Alene Tribe v. AT&T, the state wrote, “The ‘on Indian lands’ requirement of IGRA clearly mandates that any Indian gaming activity, including a consumer’s play or participation in the game, physically take place on tribal land.

The existence of a phone bank and centralized computer system on the Coeur d’Alene reservation does not change the uncontested fact that the person making the wager is located outside of Idaho, and clearly not on the Coeur d’Alene reservation. As a consequence, because the wager is placed off the reservation, the gaming activity is not conducted ‘on Indian lands’ as plainly required by IGRA.”

There is no guarantee the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case. But Florida sports betting will continue under the tribe’s ‘Hard Rock Bet’ brand for the foreseeable future.

Sports Bettors at Crossroads

Those who partake in Florida sports betting are stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. If the Supreme Court agrees with the plaintiffs, there could be no more sports betting in the state. But sports bettors in the state are currently limited to just one sportsbook.

Competition among sportsbooks is always good for the bettor. They can compare odds between the two and frequently get better betting bonuses.

Online gambling is here to stay. But it’s a question of whether it stays in Florida or not. That could very well be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

For gambling news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

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