Chris Boline
For countless folks down south in Florida, the frustration continues to grow surrounding sports betting in Florida. Just a few short months ago, things were all set to go through. Now, a Federal Judge has shot things down. On top of that, Florida sports betting is falling way short for needed referendum signatures in a last-ditch effort to try and get things overturned. We don’t have to tell you how disappointing this is.
According to local reports, Florida Education Champions is a group that is taking charge of trying to move forward with a measure to get a referendum on November’s upcoming ballot. With that said, per state laws, they need to get more than 891,000 signatures to be presented. Having said that, the current efforts have fallen way short, as the FEC is only at around 273,000 signatures. Is it time to worry?
“Florida Education Champions continues to collect and submit valid petitions to Supervisor of Elections’ offices across the state. They are working diligently to validate large quantities of petitions already in their offices. We are confident we will have enough signatures to meet the February 1, 2022 deadline,” Christina Johnson, a spokesperson for Florida Education Champions, told Gaming Today in an interview.
With the deadline being right around three weeks away, the group is certainly in a major race against time to try and get all of the signature needs. With that said, there’s a ton of support for Florida sports betting to be made legal sooner than later. That’s why people will likely be lining up to sign this measure to try and get it on the next ballot. They’ll need to sign as soon as possible to make their voices heard.
Florida Education Champions currently have 271,644 of the necessary 891,598 verified signatures to have their Florida sports betting initiative placed on the 2022 ballot.
The initiative has until Feb. 1 to verify the remaining signatures. https://t.co/kA39ClQsYA
— RLinnehanXL (@RLinnehanXl) January 5, 2022
Florida sports betting in limbo hurts with the Super Bowl around the corner
It truly goes without saying, but Florida sports betting in limbo hurts with the Super Bowl around the corner for fans to take part in. Folks continue to check out the Super Bowl odds and get their wagers in. After a questionable start to the season, the Green Bay Packers have emerged as the favorites to win it all. Obviously, this is in large part because of the play of Aaron Rodgers and wideout Davante Adams.
With that said, Florida football fans also have their eyes on Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite all of the drama surrounding Antonio Brown, who was just released by the reigning Super Bowl champions, people of bettors think that the Bucs can repeat as champions. They’ve battled a ton of injuries this year, but it wouldn’t be a surprise at all if they do indeed win it once again.
What sucks here, however, is that people in Florida were ready to get their bets in legally from their home state. Now, anyone who was to get in a Super Bowl bet leading up to the postseason won’t be able to do it in Florida. They’d have to travel elsewhere to make that happen. When sports betting looked to be legal in Florida recently, it added to the excitement for the NFL postseason odds and the Super Bowl.
The Hard Rock Cafe even had a silent launch of its mobile betting app, which had football fans jacked up beyond belief. Once the Federal Judge put the kibosh on Florida sports betting being able to move forward, that betting app had to be shut down. This added even more frustration for everyone out there who was so happy to get their bets in. With the Super Bowl almost here, plans have changed for so many.
Struttin into the weekend, last game before playoffs 👊 @Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/GduCumZiyb
— Rob Gronkowski (@RobGronkowski) January 7, 2022
Why did Florida sports betting get rejected despite it being voted through?
The question countless folks have out there is why did Florida sports betting get rejected despite it being voted through? Originally the sports betting deal indeed has been passed and it was all set to be launched on Oct. 15. However, once that date arrived, people still weren’t able to get their bets in, as things were delayed due to the open lawsuits against Florida and The Seminole Tribe. It was awful to see for folks.
Then, everyone assumed that things would then get better on Nov. 15, with that being set as the new date for online sports betting. Thousands of people were ready to sign up for apps and get their wagers in. Then, once again, things got delayed. Having said that, the Hard Rock went ahead and did launch their app, which sports fans were able to take advantage of for a little while. That didn’t last long, though.
Despite a Federal Judge tossing out one of the lawsuits against Florida, a different lawsuit that had been filed didn’t have the same result. That judge ruled in favor of the defendants, deeming that the pact between Florida and The Seminole Tribe was not legal. Because of this, all the plans for the sports betting had essentially gone to the wayside. Now, people are ready for things to change, but there’s low hope.
