No Update From the Appeals Court Has Florida Sports Fans Furious

Peter LewisPeter Lewis | February 9, 2023
No Update From the Appeals Court Has Florida Sports Fans Furious

The awful situation when it comes to change for Florida sports betting continues to have people up in arms. Last year, legal wagers were allowed for a short period of time, then it was shut down. With the Super Bowl right around the corner, it’s obvious that people are not happy. On top of that, no update from the appeals court has Florida sports fans furious, as they’re waiting to see what will end up happening.

In case you missed it, the case which took down the 30-year pact signed between Governor Ron DeSantis and The Seminole Tribe has made its way to the Appeals Court, as they’re hearing from both sides. On the other side of things are the owners of the Magic City Casino, which claimed that the agreement was illegal. A U.S. District Judge sided with those casino owners, which now has sports betting off the board.

The hope was that the appeals court, which heard opening statements earlier this winter, would be getting close to some sort of a decision. However, the appeals court has also stated that they’re going to take their time with things and they won’t rush to side either with the plaintiffs or the defendants. With all of that uncertainty, it just adds to the confusion and frustration for so many people out there.

Right now, people want to be checking the NFL betting odds, as the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs are getting ready to face off in the Super Bowl. With the way things currently stand, no legal wagers will be placed in the state – but that doesn’t mean illegal activity is going to stop. This is all something that DeSantis and the Seminole Tribe wants to see change as soon as possible. As you can tell, though, the appeals court is going to take its sweet time with this case.

No Super Bowl betting is a disaster for Florida

Looking ahead to the meeting between the Eagles and Chiefs, it really stands out that no Super Bowl betting is a disaster for Florida. According to a report, more than 50 million Americans plan to check out the Super Bowl betting odds and place a wager. Not only that, but the global numbers are projected to top $16 billion. This is a wild amount of money and plenty of states are going to reel in an incredible amount of revenue.

With Florida continuing to have its hands tied when it comes to legal sports betting, that means they can’t cash in on the revenue opportunities. This is something that Florida officials want to see be on the table by this time next year, but that all depends on what happens with the appeals court. If the court decides to rule in favor of the Magic City Casino owners, then people all over the state will be ready to panic.

Should the appeals court indeed go against the state, then we might not be able to see legal sports betting arrive in the Sunshine State until potentially 2025. There’s still a chance we could see something arrive in 2024, but it all depends on if the right kind of sports bill would arrive for lawmakers to take a look at later this year. However, right now, people in Florida have all their eggs in one basket: getting a favorable ruling from the appeals court.

With that uncertainty, it just adds to the stress for DeSantis and the tribes. With The Seminole Tribe in particular, they’re getting ready to open up a new casino in the near future and the hope is that they’ll be able to have a sportsbook outlet present for visitors to not only take a look at, but also make wagers as well. As has been the case for a year now, people are going to have to keep waiting to see what ends up happening.

Illegal betting won’t go away in Florida

As is the case over in California, it’s clear that illegal betting won’t go away in Florida. People all over the state are continuing to use off-shore accounts to place online bets. There’s also always going to be a high amount of bookies who are taking bets under the table. All of that money being exchanged is unregulated, which is a major headache for federal authorities.

They try to crack down on things, but it’s tough to catch everything that’s going on. Plenty of illegal Super Bowl bets will be on the way too. The only way that this will stop – or shrink in significant fashion – is if some form of legal activity makes itself present. This is why DeSantis and the tribes reached their agreement in the first place.

The more illegal bets that are placed, you’d think the more urgency there would be to have things flipped around. DeSantis and the tribes are doing everything they can to try and make the appeals court come to its senses, but no one knows how things are going to shape out. Just like all the sports betting proponents, we agree with their anger. Enough is enough.

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.