Missouri sports betting bettors have crossed into Kansas for nearly 3 years to put legal sports bets. Three years from now, Kansas citizens might do the very same.

Key takeaways

- Kansas lawmakers halted new sportsbook license extensions up until 2026, meaning possible regulative changes that might impact its six legal operators after 2027.

- Missouri is set to introduce legal mobile sportsbooks in late 2025, potentially reversing cross-border wagering trends as Kansas bettors may head east.

- Future modifications in Kansas could include a sole-operator model or tax walkings, impacting competitors and encouraging bettors to look for alternatives in Missouri.

Kansas sports betting background

Kansas launched its first legal mobile sportsbooks in 2022. Six books now take bets: BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, ESPN BET, Fanatics and FanDuel.
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The capability to place legal bets in Kansas brings in wagerers on the Missouri side of the Kansas City city area to Kansas to wager, with some doing so most or sports betting almost every day of the week.

That could change if Kansas lawmakers upend the current regulative structure. Sources tell Covers some lawmakers want to increase the state's sports betting wagering tax revenue, amongst the most affordable per capita of any of the 30 states with statewide legal mobile .
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Kansas' most likely reconsideration of its six-book legal sports wagering market next year will come after Missouri goes live with as numerous as a dozen books; if Kansas significantly reduces its offerings, it might lead KS bettors to position bets in MO, the opposite of the current pattern

The alterations could be as basic as a tax increase. It might also result in a sole-source operator sports betting design some lawmakers are thinking about, one that might generate more direct income for the state but possibly displace some or all of the six existing sportsbooks once their licenses expire in Aug. 2027.

The legislation passed previously this month only puts a prohibition up until 2026, meaning Kansas' existing sportsbooks can take bets up until their licenses end the list below year. Lawmakers may not even consider a dramatic change to the regulative structure when they reconvene for the 2026 session, implying no noticeable effect for Sunflower State wagerers.

But the license extension prohibition leaves the possibility for remarkable modifications that didn't appear possible weeks earlier.

Missouri sportsbooks prepare to launch

The Kansas move comes as Missouri nears the launch of its legal sportsbooks.

Missouri's multi-year sports betting wagering legalization push ended in Nov. 2024, when citizens narrowly approved a ballot step to bring legal retail and online sportsbooks to the state. The vote followed years of unsuccessful efforts to legalize sports wagering in the legislature.
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Missouri's legal sportsbooks are set to begin taking bets in the fourth quarter of 2025. There are also set to be nearly twice as many wagering options in Missouri as Kansas.
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FanDuel and DraftKings contributed more than $30 million to support the tally measure. The two U.S. market share leaders have actually, as expected, announced strategies to take bets in Missouri as soon as accredited.
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Other books including BetMGM, BetRivers and Underdog also announced launch plans. Bet365 struck an offer with MLB's St. Louis Cardinals and likewise plans to accept bets in the state.

Caesars, which opposed the ballot procedure over license allowance concerns, runs 3 Missouri casinos and is qualified to release its online book in the state. Penn Entertainment (ESPN BET) and Bally's (Bally Bet) also operate Missouri casinos that grant them immediate market gain access to.

Other books consisting of Hard Rock, live in Illinois, could also pursue one of roughly two-dozen prospective Missouri sports wagering licenses.
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The wider variety of Show Me State betting alternatives could attract Kansas wagerers in the Kansas City metro location to Missouri to place bets, reversing years of gambler traffic going the opposite direction. This could speed up if the Sunflower State reduces its sportsbook roster, especially if DraftKings and/or FanDuel can no longer accept bets.
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Missouri citizens in the Kansas City city were the most ardent fans of the sports betting ballot measure, which might underscore homeowners' interest in positioning bets in their home state when books go live.

Missouri's sports betting lineup is unpredictable ahead of the 2025 launch. Kansas' sportsbooks might change too in the taking place years.