Nebraska online sports betting proponents are gearing up for a general election campaign after a successful multimillion-dollar effort to bring the legalization question before state voters.
- Nebraska voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to legalize statewide mobile sports betting, which would make the state the 33rd to approve it.
- Major sportsbooks spent more than $7 million on the signature campaign, with the first general election campaign finance report due Oct. 5.
- The proposal could allow up to 12 mobile sportsbooks but would retain Nebraska’s ban on wagers involving in-state college teams playing within the state.
State officials this summer approved two complementary ballot measures that would amend the state constitution and enact changes permitting statewide mobile sports wagering. Proponents, led by the advocacy group Tax Relief Nebraska, collected enough signatures to put the legalization question before voters on this fall’s ballot.
If approved by a majority of voters on the Nov. 3 ballot, Nebraska would become the 33rd state to approve legal statewide mobile sports wagering. In-person wagering is already permitted at state casinos and racetracks.
Major sportsbooks contributed more than $7 million for the signature-gathering campaign. Online sports betting proponents now turn their attention to the general election.
Tax Relief Nebraska will have to file its first general election campaign report by Oct. 5. Financial filings will help gauge sportsbooks’ investment in - and prospects for - a successful vote in November.
Supporters could contribute millions of dollars more to drum up support this fall, as they have in prior ballot measure efforts in other states. The Nebraska Family Alliance has been among the measure’s prominent opponents, though it is unclear what financial contributions, if any, the group would make to try to defeat the ballot measure.
Potential Nebraska market
If approved, Nebraska could offer up to 12 statewide mobile sportsbooks, two apiece for each of the state’s six gaming facilities. It may not fill all those allocated spots.
Missouri, Nebraska's neighbor and the most recent state to legalize online sports betting in the U.S., has only eight licensees for more than 20 available spots. Missouri has three times the population as well as multiple high-profile professional sports teams.
FanDuel, DraftKings, Fanatics, and BetMGM are almost certain to seek licensure after each operator contributed financially to the signature-gathering campaign. Caesars, which operates a Nebraska gaming facility and has a branded retail sportsbook at the property, will also likely seek a mobile license.
Other potential applicants include bet365 and theScore Bet, though it remains to be seen if they or any other book looks to launch in the state.
College betting restrictions
The ballot measure would not allow online sports bets on Nebraska college teams when they play in the state. That prohibition applies to the existing retail books.
Nebraska is the only state with a form of legal sports betting that bans bets on college teams when they play within state lines but allows wagers when they play in different jurisdictions.
The college betting ban is especially notable because the most followed team by far is the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team, and other popular college programs include the Creighton Blue Jays men’s basketball team. Some Nebraska lawmakers and community leaders have argued the ban protects student athletes from harassment.
Prediction market competition
The Nebraska online sports betting ballot measure push comes as prediction markets have launched nationwide and exploded in popularity. Underdog dropped its Missouri sports betting license application to instead launch a prediction market product.
DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics already offer sports event contracts via their respective prediction market platforms in Nebraska.
Though they operate legally as federally regulated trading platforms, critics have argued prediction market platforms circumvent state gambling laws and act as de facto sportsbooks. More than a dozen states have pursued legal action.
Nebraska’s attorney general's office joined several other states in filing an amicus brief in support of Nevada’s case seeking to ban prediction markets. An appeals court ruled in favor of Nevada, setting up a likely case before the Supreme Court.
