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Seemingly out of nowhere, the optimism for legal Oklahoma sports betting did a 180, as Governor Kevin Stitt revealed a plan to try and get things done this year. Previously, it felt like the state was still a few years away from getting things over the top. Stitt has other plans, though. With that said, an Oklahoma Republican gave a rough outlook on the sports betting push, and no one knows what to expect in the coming months.
According to a report, Republican Steve Bashore said that multiple lawmakers and officials in Oklahoma have a feeling that legal sports betting will not get done until Stitt is out of office. That would mean that things would be delayed for three years, which would be the worst-case scenario for sports fans out there. Stitt has been adamant about trying to make history, but we can’t ignore the fact that he’s still facing a ton of opposition.
The main issue for Stitt with his current efforts to get sports betting done is his issues with the local tribes. This has been a problem for a while now and things weren’t helped when Stitt announced his plan to legalize sports betting. The tribes revealed that Stitt didn’t consult with them at all. Because of this, the layout of his plan came as a complete and total shock to tribal leaders. It goes without saying, but people were not happy about this.
Moving forward, there’s still hope that Stitt and the tribes can get on the same page, but right now it doesn’t seem like there’s a strong chance of that happening. With that, it’s not a surprise at all that Bashore and other Republicans aren’t feeling too optimistic about Stitt being able to move things forward with his sports betting plan. Stitt is going to try and get things accomplished regardless, but this latest update sure has folks talking.
Speaking @nclgs Rep. Steve Bashore of Oklahoma says there are some lawmakers in the state that think sports betting won't get done until Gov. Kevin Stitt terms out in 3 years.
— Jessica Welman (@jesswelman) January 6, 2024
Kevin Stitt has laid out his plan for Oklahoma sports betting
While there are a lot of questions from citizens, Kevin Stitt has laid out his plan for Oklahoma sports betting. During the fall, Stitt sent out a release to make sure people were informed about what he and his team have in the works. As we stated above, though, there has been a lot of pushback, particularly from members of tribes. Despite that, Stitt’s plan could end up being a positive one for the state.
In the release, Stitt announced that mobile betting would be included in his plan, with things taxed at a 20 percent rate. In addition to that, there would be an initial licensing fee for sportsbooks of $500,000, while $100,000 would be required to keep things going each year. There are plenty of revenue possibilities for Oklahoma, which is what Stitt is hoping to take full advantage of with his legal sports betting project.
“I promised Oklahomans if we pursued sports betting, we would do it right— and this plan does just that,” Stitt said in a statement released to the public back in November. “Thirty-five states have already legalized sports betting, and it’ll be a great revenue stream for the state. Tribes will be able to add it onto their existing infrastructure, and Oklahomans can access it right from their phone.”
Mobile betting obviously would be a home-run decision for the state, but it remains to be seen if things will get done or not. In terms of NBA betting odds, people would surely rush to follow the Oklahoma City Thunder, as they’re the only professional team in the state. With all of that said, Stitt doesn’t have full support from the local government, which is a concern. This is something he needs to focus on as soon as possible.
Making an impact on both ends of the floor @Keyontae ⚡️#OKCBlue pic.twitter.com/nV7QUkR1IQ
— OKC BLUE (@okcblue) January 11, 2024
College football betting has monster potential for Oklahoma
One thing that has people thinking Stitt could be on to something, though, is that college football betting has monster potential for Oklahoma. While the Thunder are a popular squad in the area, fans would love to check the NCAAF betting odds and put money down on both the Oklahoma Sooners and the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Those are two great college programs with fantastic coaches.
There are a lot of moving parts with college football right now, as there has been plenty of conference realignment across the USA. Luckily, this isn’t going to have an impact on the stadiums being packed to the brim for both Oklahoma and OSU games in the fall. Not only are those two teams popular in the state, but the Big 12 as a whole receives a ton of attention from start to finish during the campaign.
Stitt is fully aware of this, which is why he would love to be given the green light for his sports betting bill as soon as possible. There’s no exact timeframe for when this will happen, but there are clearly a ton of loops that he still needs to get through. Stitt is set on getting this done, but again, no one knows how this will go down.
