Missouri sports team wants to see betting on the November ballot

Following news that a pair of draft bills is preparing to enter the fray for legalizing sports gambling, Missouri’s professional sports franchises have vowed to support a measure of their own and have launched a new initiative petition that wants to see the matter put up to a vote by Missourians.

The sports teams, among whom are the Chiefs and Royals, are pushing for the issue to be put as a question on the November ballot and allow residents to decide if they want to see the activity legalized. The franchises are not putting too much trust in renewed efforts in the House of Representatives and the State Senate, as they fear that the bills with be mothballed.

November presents an opportunity for the teams to go around this obstacle altogether and leave matters with residents, who may be more easily swayed to embrace innovation than bipartisan lawmakers who tend to politicize every issue. Yet, there has been a remarkable level of cooperation between the Grand Old Party and the Democrats when it comes to sports gambling in general.

With Vermont launching last Thursday, and Missouri further falling behind, however, the state’s sports teams are determined to try and take matters in their hands. The sports teams hope to collect the necessary number of votes, some 180,000 needed, in order to put the proposal on the ballot.

In an official statement provided by St. Louis Cardinals president Bill DeWitt III, the team and its boss said that bringing sports betting legalization was a priority for the teams, and they would seek to create a safe, reasonable, and responsible way for locals to place a wager.

Unlike the previously proposed bills, the company wants to see the 13 Missouricasinos along with professional sports teams to be able to offer sports gambling, including both in a physical location and as part of a mobile offer. The initiative estimates that the state could raise around $5m in tax and licensing fees every year from the activity.

Missouri is an outlier in not legalizing sports gambling, and there seems to be enough support from residents and professional teams to try and make this happen, even if legislators have been uncertain or hesitant not to ruffle their electorate’s feathers in attempting to broach a topic that could prove too controversial with their constituents. This is why sports teams are taking matters in their own hands.

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