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Texas legislation meets once every two years to pass new laws, and 2025 has to be one of those years. There was hope 2025 would be the year that sports betting in Texas would become a thing. Welp, it’s safe to say that betting hope is dead.
It was always going to be tough to pass anything in the Lone Star State. We knew that, but most thought the difficulties would be in the Senate — which was the case in 2023 during a failed proposal. Welp, the issue is now in the House too after the latest developments. Keep reading and we’ll tell you all about what’s happening.
House Shoots Down Legal Betting In A Letter
There are 150 members in the state’s House. To get a bill passed internally, it needs a two-thirds majority. Back in 2023, a sports betting bill netted 101 votes — the first time a proposal had even passed. It would eventually die in the Senate (more on them soon), but still, legal betting seemingly had some support in the House.
Not anymore. In mid-March, 12 newly elected Republicans, along with three returning legislators (who previously voted in favor of legalization), made it clear that they would not support any proposal to expand gambling. Collectively, they sent a letter to Rep. Ken King — who chairs the House State Affairs Committee — urging him to kill gambling proposals outright. This includes separate bills for casinos and sports betting, which were kicked around in February.
“We are confident this legislation does not have the votes necessary to pass the Texas House this session,” the letter states. “Given the certainty of its failure, I urge you not to waste valuable committee time on an issue that is dead on arrival.”
For what it’s worth, King has not responded publicly to the letter. Still, it’s a death blow to proponents of legalized betting. It shows the issue has gone backward since 2023. Among the 12 newbies who signed the bill, nine of them replaced lawmakers who had favored legalization. Thus, getting a two-thirds vote is highly unlikely after a narrow win in 2023.
Supporters of gambling expansion have tried to win over skeptical lawmakers by emphasizing that the constitutional amendment wouldn’t legalize gambling outright — it would simply allow Texas voters to decide the issue in a statewide referendum. That argument aims to shift responsibility away from lawmakers, letting the public have the final say. However, with growing opposition in the House, even that approach seems unlikely now. Womp womp womp.
Opposition In Senate As Strong As Ever
Going into 2025, everyone knew the Senate would be the biggest roadblock to legalization efforts. Has anything changed there as it did in the House?
Nope, not at all. The Senate is still led by Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, who killed the 2023 bill as soon as it made its way onto the floor. He’s made his opposition to legal gambling loud and clear with quote after quote tearing down the issue. Patrick hasn’t changed his tune as of late either.
Patrick will remain in his position — which is pretty much second highest to the governor in all of state politics — until January 2027. He’s mentioned re-running for another four-year term afterward despite being 74 years old now.
As long as Patrick is in power, legalized betting will struggle to move forward. Texan bettors will have to stick to offshore sportsbooks to get their gambling fix.
The Sands Are In No Man’s Land
The biggest losers out of all this? Not the Texas bettors, but The Sands. The casino conglomerate has been the biggest influence for setting up a legal industry, but it obviously hasn’t been enough.
“Denying Texans the chance to vote on this matter not only undermines the democratic process but also disregards the voices of the very people they represent,” said Matt Hirsch, a spokesperson for the Texas Destination Resort Alliance. “The voters of Texas know that destination resorts have the potential to bring significant economic benefits, job creation, and increased tourism to Texas while eliminating the scourge of illegal gaming in Texas.”
The Texas Destination Resort Alliance is exactly as it sounds — a group vouching for a resort casino. The Sands is funding the group, all with the hopes of creating a destination casino in the Dallas area. The idea would be for the casino to be next to a brand-new arena for the Dallas Mavericks, which they bought from Mark Cuban.
Elsewhere, the Sands has launched an aggressive lobbying effort up and down the state. Their pockets have been bottomless thanks to Miriam Adelson, who owns the majority of the Samds. Adelson has poured millions into statehouse elections, aiming to expand the number of gambling-friendly lawmakers in the Texas House.
Interestingly enough, eight of the lawmakers who signed the recent anti-gambling letter received campaign contributions last year from Adelson through the Texas Sands PAC. Then again, records show that Adelson-aligned PACs actually funneled even larger sums to their opponents. She’s trying to buy any and every vote — perhaps the wrong strategy given recent events. Betting is virtually dead this legislative session and will have to wait til 2027.
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