Gov. Evers Will Make Wisconsin Online Sports Betting Decision This Week

• Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) has until Thursday, April 9, to make his decision on an online sports betting bill
• The legislature presented AB 601, which legalizes online sports betting for state tribes, to Gov. Evers last week
• The governor has said he would consult with tribes who were not in favor of the bill before making his decision

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A decision on the fate of Wisconsin online sports betting will be made by the governor this week.

Gov. Tony Evers (D) will have until Thursday, April 9, to decide to either sign, veto, or take no action on Rep. Tyler August’s bill, AB 601, which legalizes online sports betting for Wisconsin tribes.

Gov. Evers was presented the bill on Tuesday, April 2, and has six days (excluding Sunday) to make a final decision on the legislation.

Hearing From Tribes Before Decision

Gov. Evers has remained fairly mum on his opinion on the legislation, only publicly stating he would first speak with tribal leaders not in favor of the legislation before making a final decision on the bill.

“I’ll have to take a look at what the bill actually says, but also talk to those people from whichever tribal nations haven’t signed on where they are at. And so, we’ll be doing some talking with tribal leaders, and hopefully we can get something done,” Gov. Evers said, according to WBAY.

Evers will either sign the bill into law, veto the bill and send it back to the Senate with a veto note, or take no action on the legislation. If he takes no action on the bill it will automatically become law without his signature.

If Evers chooses to veto the bill, the Senate and Assembly can override his veto if two-thirds of the members of each house votes to do so.

The Wisconsin Senate approved AB 601 in March by a 21-12 vote, allowing Wisconsin tribes to offer online sports betting through a hub-and-spoke system. The Wisconsin Assembly approved August’s bill in February.

If signed into law, the state will allow tribes to offer online sports betting through a “hub-and-spoke system,” which is is the same methodology used by the Seminole Tribe to legalize online sports betting in Florida. The tribe began offering online sports betting in the state in 2021, arguing that since its servers were located on its tribal land, any bet placed in the state and processed through the device were technically made on tribal land.

As long as a Wisconsin tribe has an approved gaming compact with the U.S. Department of the Interior that allows sports betting, and processes sports bets through a server on its tribal land, online sports betting will be legal.

Tribes will have to renegotiate their gaming compacts to offer online sports betting through their own platforms or through partnerships with sports betting companies. The renegotiated compacts will have to be approved by the federal government.

Who Will Work in Wisconsin?

The bill’s revenue framework may not make Wisconsin an attractive market for the country’s largest sports betting operators. Any sports betting company operating in Wisconsin will be required to provide 60% of their revenues to their tribal partners.

During a public hearing for the bill this past fall, Damon Stewart, counsel for the Sports Betting Alliance, reported if Wisconsin legalizes online sports betting through the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) and the proposed hub-and-spoke model, the market will not be economically viable for operators to enter.

Stewart, speaking on behalf of the Sports Betting Alliance, said major sports betting operators likely would not participate in Wisconsin’s sports betting market if required to provide the majority of revenues to their tribal partners.

However, in late February FanDuel and DraftKings both agreed to casino partnerships in Arkansas which will allow their entry into the state. Arkansas has a similar revenue framework as Wisconsin, which requires operators to provide 51% of their revenues to their casino partners. Their willingness to enter into Arkansas may also eventually lead to their entry into Wisconsin as well, which should prove to be a larger sports betting market than the Natural State.

The Arkansas Racing & Gaming Commission approved both FanDuel and DraftKings applications for sports betting vendor licenses, allowing FanDuel to partner with Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort and DraftKings with Southland Casino.

Both companies will act as vendors for the casinos and offer online sports betting on their behalf.