Sports Betting Battle is Heating Up in California

Peter LewisPeter Lewis | June 28, 2022
Sports Betting Battle is Heating Up in California

The good news for people who want California sports betting to become legal later this year is that things are rocking in the right direction. There are multiple initiatives ready to go on the ballot in November and the expectation is that people will vote one of them in. Which initiative will win the hearts of the voters and go into place sooner than later? Well, the sports betting battle is heating up in California.

According to a report from KSBY, the sports betting ads are firing up consistently, with the two main initiatives having quite the rivalry already. On one hand, you have one of the initiatives that’s powered by the major sportsbooks in the USA. With this, they’ve also pitched the idea of using funds from this initiative to help fight the issue of mental health and homelessness in California.

Then on the other side of things, you have the initiative that would put the power of things in the hands of the Indian Tribes, as this particular one would result in sportsbooks only being allowed on tribal casinos, with online sports betting certainly to follow after that as well. Right now, it really feels like one of these two initiatives is going to be the one to pass

Therefore, it only makes sense that they’d be putting in millions of dollars in advertisements to try and win over the hearts of the voters. Once next fall rolls around, those ads will be sent into overdrive to try and catch the attention of people. Things might be busy now, but they’ll reach a new level in the coming months. People in the state should prepare for countless ads to be sent their way.

Sports betting is on the way for California

One thing to keep in mind here is that sports betting is on the way for California, unless something drastic happens. These two initiatives will 100 percent be on the ballot, while others could be on the way too. Having said that, with it looking almost certain that one of these will get voted in, that means that people in California will be able to make legal sports bets at this time next year.

We can’t tell you how massive this will be for the state. Money is going to be regulated for sports betting, which has been long overdue. One one side of things too, the revenue that comes in could help California tackle two of its biggest issues in the state. This is why the sportsbooks are optimistic that their initiative is the one that’s given the green light to move forward by the voters.

“We’ll use it to solve our state’s toughest challenge – homelessness – and funding mental health treatment and addiction services that help get folks off the streets,” spokesman for the California Solutions for Homelessness and Mental Health Act Nathan Click said.

The tribes aren’t ready to lose this battle, however, as they too are making a strong push to win over the voters. These two initiatives are going to keep pushing to come out on top. There are millions and millions -potentially billions – of dollars stake here with whoever lands the sports betting rights. Regardless of that, people all over the state can’t wait for things to be finalized.

When will California sports betting arrive?

With everything progressing, people are asking themselves when will California sports betting arrive? Well, this is all up in the air, but it’s looking like things will be ready to rock in time for the later stages of the football season. With the ballot coming in November, you never know how quickly things can get turned around after a decision is made by the voters.

If either the sportsbooks or the tribes are able to move quickly, then people could be able to make bets in California by the late fall or early winter. This would be massive and it’d really help people get off to a fast start in terms of betting. They’d most definitely check out the NFL odds and the NCAAF odds and make countless bets before the season is wrapped up.

When it comes to the NFL, the Los Angeles Rams are coming off a Super Bowl-winning season and they’ve got strong Super Bowl odds to repeat. Other teams to watch of course include the Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Green Bay Packers and more. This is going to be an incredibly intriguing NFL season and people are ready to lay money on the line for the biggest games.

While things won’t be in place for Week 1, that doesn’t mean that the option to place legal California bets won’t be on the table later on in the year. This will be something to monitor and football fans will surely be checking in on things on a consistent level. All in all, sports betting is coming sooner than later and that is news that so many people are ready to celebrate.

Peter Lewis

Peter Lewis Jr. comes from Mississippi where he and his family spend their days discussing college football and basketball. He's written sports journalism for years after studying journalism at a local university.