Back in November 2021, mobile sports betting was launched in Florida via the Hard Rock Sportsbook app. A month later, Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ended operations after an onslaught of lawsuits came forward. As of now, these cases are tied up in litigation, and there is no timetable as to when mobile sports betting with the top sports betting apps could be back up and running in the Sunshine State.
In this article, we'll keep you up to date on the backstory, the latest information, and if there will ever be a day to expect the top betting sites to come back to Florida.
How Did Florida Initially Get Mobile Sports Betting?
In April 2021, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a new compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida to bring mobile sports betting to Florida. State legislators approved the deal the following month and the US Department of Interior allowed the tribal compact to be published in the Federal Register in August.
After some long battles, mobile sports betting was finally available in November 2021 for a short while via the Hard Rock Sportsbook app. There is certainly enough support from the population, considering a deal was once struck, and a decent amount of people hail from up North where sports betting is extremely popular. Even betting on horse racing is legal, but unfortunately, that wasn't enough to keep mobile sports betting around to stay.
Why Did Florida Stop Mobile Sports Betting?
There were some local groups that presented legal cases against mobile sports betting in Florida, insinuating that it violated a constitutional amendment that violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. A federal judge sided with the plaintiffs and the contract was voided pending appeals from the Seminole Tribe and US Department of Interior.
The odd thing here is that voters in the state approved an amendment back in 2018 to the Florida constitution that gave them the power to decide whether future gaming expansions could happen. However, plenty of interest groups have come forward to challenge that ruling. The lawsuits are keeping everything in limbo for the moment, and everyone will have to be patient and see how those play out before any new rulings can be made going forward that could allow the best PayPal betting sites to go live in Florida.
Will Florida Ever Get Mobile Sports Betting Back?
Florida had plenty of success with its professional sports teams in recent history, with the Florida Panthers of the NHL and the Miami Heat of the NBA making it to their league's respective championship series. This also comes on the heels of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning making it to three straight Stanley Cup Finals, including wins in two of them, and two Florida schools – Florida Atlantic University and University of Miami – both making it to this year's Final Four.
Court cases are always a tricky thing, and it's not like they rush through these cases either. If Florida ever does get mobile sports betting with the top credit card betting sites legalized once again, it is will undoubtedly take some time. All you need to do is check the mentions on Twitter, or even sports betting message boards, to know that the people of Florida are hungry to have this part of their lives once again – even if it only was for just a month.
This article is part of our Betting Promotions series.
