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It’s finally happening. Missouri legal sports betting is inching closer and closer toward its go-live date of December 1.
But it’s not just sitting back and waiting in the meantime. No, the state is still setting up its legal betting market, including which top mobile betting apps and sportsbooks will be allowed in. Dozens of licenses will be rewarded, and we’re starting to see the first winners. Keep on reading and we’ll tell you the latest news!
Two Books Win Untethered Licenses
Make no mistake about it, the crown jewel license was the two “untethered” ones. These licenses weren’t tied to any local pro team or casino. Untethered means they stand alone, and there was only two of these to go around.
It was an almost foregone conclusion that the two winners would be DraftKings and FanDuel. For one, they are the unquestioned market leaders across the country. But secondly, both spent millions of dollars to get betting legalized last year. It was one of the most expensive ad campaigns in the industry, and it worked. Barely, as the voting ballot passed by under 1 percent.
But in a complete stunner, only one of those books got this license. DraftKings got it, and FanDuel didn’t. The DraftKings pitch centered around its scale, tech, and ability to acquire customers. Obviously, that was enough to seal the deal.
But who did FanDuel lose out to, you ask? Not BetMGM. Not Fanatics. But a lesser-known bookie called Circa. While Circa is famous in Vegas betting for its huge casino, it doesn’t have a name outside of there. Yet, they were able to win the coveted license. How? We’ll get to that in the next section.
Circa’s Winning Pitch
Circa can’t beat FanDuel on flash. They don’t have deep pockets. However, they can win on their playing experience.
Circa’s pitch centered around its low-hold, high-volume model aimed at serious bettors. This is in contrast to the DraftKings and FanDuel of the world, which target casual players — and often ban sharp players. Rather than promoting parlays nonstop like their competitors, Circa says it wasn’t to lure high rollers and serious bettors with unbearable odds.
Now, why would Missouri regulators care about that? The way Circa CEO Derek Stevens pitched it, is that it’s a way to bring bettors back from offshore sites. Typically, high rollers go offshore to bet bigger and without restriction. Circa is saying they’ll bring them back — and bring those tax dollars to Missouri. It’s always a smart pitch once you mention more tax revenue.
“Winning one of Missouri’s first two untethered mobile betting licenses is a great honor,” Stevens said. “We came in as the long shot against national giants like DraftKings and FanDuel, but our licensure approval today proves there’s room for a different kind of operator.
Circa’s license will be online only. They have one of the biggest sportsbooks in all of Las Vegas, but have zero plans to do the same here.
FanDuel Didn’t Leave Empty Handed
Make no mistake, FanDuel didn’t walk away empty-handed. Hours after losing out on an untethered license, they announced a market access deal with St. Louis City SC of Major League Soccer. That partnership locks them into a “tethered” Missouri license.
The way Missouri set up its licenses is that sportsbooks could also partner up with a pro team to be their official sportsbook brand. This is how Bet365 will enter the market. Way back in March, they struck first, signing a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Anyways, FanDuel is still licking their chops in the market. Why? Because they are already sitting on a database of 110,000 Missouri customers who bet in neighboring states like Illinois and Kansas. Those players have existing accounts that’ll work inside the state starting December 1. That’s when FanDuel will turn on its marketing machine to get them back. We fully expect them to either be the No. 1 or No. 2 sportsbook once it goes live.
What’s Next Before Launch
December 1 is the big day. Between now and then, Missouri will finish sorting out tethered licenses for other operators. Casinos and teams are still fielding offers, and plenty of deals are yet to be announced.
The big elephant in the room is who will partner with the Kansas City Chiefs. You can make a strong argument this is the most valuable sports property in America right now. Yes, bigger than the Lakers or Cowboys or Yankees. Not only are they routine Super Bowl visitors, but they’re now connected to America’s biggest pop star, Taylor Swift, via her relationship with Travis Kelce. There are a lot of eyeballs on the team cause of all this, and those eyeballs will surely be valuable to a betting operator with signage at the game:
We’ll see what happens, but this we do know: when the dust settles, Missouri will have one of the most robust sports betting markets with big-name books and even underdogs like Circa.
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