Florida Sports Betting Officially Launched and Fans Loved Opening Day

The long wait is over! When it comes to Florida sports betting news, people have been getting used to only negative updates over the past two years. However, things changed in a massive way, with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and The Seminole Tribe being given the green light once again for their 30-year betting pact. And with that, Florida sports betting officially launched and fans loved opening day.

On Tuesday, Dec. 7, online sports betting kicked off and as expected, things were incredibly popular among the local bettors. While we’re still waiting for the official numbers to be posted for the first day, reports state that the expectation is that the betting handle is going to be through the roof. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as this is something people all over Florida have been waiting for.

When things were up and running for a few weeks in October of 2021, folks took full advantage of the betting options, with online numbers being sky-high. The great thing about Florida is unlike other states, they wasted no time in making sure mobile options were on the table for everyone from the start. Fans love the convenience of being able to place a bet from anywhere they might be on the go.

Now that things are back and on good terms, it’s looking like the sky’s the limit for the betting potential in Florida. With Week 14 of the NFL season arriving last week, people wasted no time in putting money down on the Thursday Night Football contest between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots. The action surely continued over the weekend and now people are fired up for Week 15. This is all good news for lawmakers who approved this plan, no doubt about that at all.

The Miami Dolphins are getting a ton of betting love early on

In what a lot of people were expecting, the Miami Dolphins are getting a ton of betting love early on. In Week 14, the Dolphins are taking on the Miami Dolphins in a Monday Night Football contest and big bets were recorded for the squad over the weekend. We’ll find out soon enough if the Dolphins will be able to take care of business or not, but people are loving the way the offense has been looking this season.

It all starts with the play of Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill. Tagovailoa is easily having the best year of his career, with the left-handed quarterback throwing the ball all over the field. Luckily for him, Hill is also in the middle of a brilliant campaign and he’s easily proving to be one of the best wideouts in the league. With these two playing so well, Miami continues to see its NFL betting odds to win the AFC go up. Could this team eventually push for a Super Bowl title in February and make history?

“I think for all of us that have been around the NFL long enough, you get about four, five games left and playoff seeding becomes a lot of the conversation,” McDaniel said while speaking to the media. “The only reason why we are 9–3 is because we haven’t penciled in any of the wins people have told us to pencil in. My reaction to it is, ‘Oh?’ But irrelevant and erroneous for what’s the most important thing, and that’s the game that will be played this week on national television.”

Per the best-rated sportsbooks, which includes the reliable Bovada review, Miami is a big-time favorite to take down Tennessee in primetime. If the Dolphins are able to post a win, bettors in Florida are going to see a nice return on their investment. However, if the Titans are able to cover the spread or post an upset win, then the local sportsbooks will surely be celebrating the revenue they’re going to end up generating. This will be a great game to watch and fans can’t wait to see who comes out on top.

College Football Playoff betting will also be strong for Florida

Despite Florida State being jobbed out of the No. 4 spot by the committee, there’s no question that College Football Playoff betting will also be strong for Florida. The final four teams have been set and a lot of the early money is going on No. 1 Michigan to win the title. Michigan has a huge test coming on Jan. 1, with Alabama next up on the schedule.

With that said, you also can’t forget about No. 2 Washington and No. 3 Texas either, as the Huskies and Longhorns are hoping to make a splash and prove a lot of people wrong next month too. With all of that said, now that online betting is present in Florida, we’re expecting incredible numbers for the state for the semifinals. Then before you know it, the National Championship Game will get here too. You better believe that millions of dollars in Florida will be played for that game regardless of who’s in it.

Peter Lewis

Peter Lewis Jr. comes from Mississippi where he and his family spend their days discussing college football, baseball and basketball. He's written sports journalism for years after studying journalism at a local university. Over time, Peter has cultivated extensive knowledge covering sports betting legislation across the country. He closely tracks the latest regulatory developments and provides key insights into their impacts. Peter also offers sharp MLB betting analysis, leveraging stats and trends to identify value on matchups.