The Sunshine State is the largest market for legal sports betting in the United States — and it all belongs to the Seminole Tribe and its Hard Rock Bet brand.
In 2024, that status quo was cemented through the courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, Florida sports betting is humming, turning Hard Rock into one of the more significant names in the business all thanks to its legal monopoly in one state.
With all that said, the door has opened a crack for other operators. Whether they will be allowed to step through will be up to the Seminole, but the possibility at least exists.
Florida Sports Betting: 2024 Highlights
Jan. 31, 2024: The Florida Gaming Control Commission sent a second round of cease-and-desist letters to Underdog, PrizePicks, and Betr over the fantasy sports contests they were offering in the state.
Feb. 2024: The forces fighting to topple Florida’s sports betting legal monopoly took their complaints to the state’s Supreme Court. Pari-mutuel operators West Flagler Associates Ltd. and Bonita-Fort Myers Corp. petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a lower-court decision upholding federal approval of the Florida-Seminole gaming compact.
Feb. 26, 2024: PrizePicks says it will hit the pause button on its Florida business.
March 21, 2024: The Supreme Court of Florida dismisses the state-level challenge to the Seminole gaming compact, saying the legal tool used is not “the proper vehicle” for the matter. All seven justices concurred with the decision to deny the so-called “petition for a writ of quo warranto” that aimed to undo the arrangement between Florida and the Seminole Tribe that provides the latter with control over retail and online sports betting in the Sunshine State.
April 22, 2024: PrizePicks returns to Florida with its peer-to-peer "Arena" game, rather than the previous format played against the "house." Underdog and Betr have also switched to peer-to-peer games in Florida.
June 17, 2024: The U.S. Supreme Court officially shuts down the federal legal challenge of the Florida-Seminole gaming compact, keeping intact the tribe’s control over sports betting in the Sunshine State.
Wow, looks like the legal strife between the Seminole Tribe of Florida and parimutuel operators is over, according to a press release. Per an agreement, latter will not launch new lawsuits over Seminole-run gambling, and the former will put Jai Alai on its Hard Rock Bet app. pic.twitter.com/8lbUGqTqSA
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) October 28, 2024
Oct. 9, 2024: Hard Rock International chairman and Seminole Gaming CEO Jim Allen says they have developed a “great relationship” with DraftKings and FanDuel. Allen also says that, in the long-term “some type of strategic relationship with some of the brands that really have marquee value could be helpful to both of us, and we are receptive to those conversations.” In other words, the door is at least a little bit open to another, non-Hard Rock brand getting involved in sports betting in Florida.
Oct. 28, 2024: Longtime legal foes Hard Rock and West Flagler announce a peace agreement wherein Jai Alai will be added to the Hard Rock Bet app and the court challenges will cease.
Florida Sports Betting: Where Things Stand
It’s the Seminole’s world and we’re all just living in it. The courts have given the tribe all the legal cover they need to become the sole and successful operator in Florida, and Hard Rock has definitely taken advantage.
However, the comments from the head of the Seminole’s gaming business suggest they are open to letting other operators into the state — as long as it benefits the tribe. DraftKings and FanDuel, which backed an unsuccessful effort to put a sports betting-related question to voters in 2022, would surely welcome the chance. Whether they get it, and how they get it if they ever do, remains a big question.
Florida Sports Betting: What's Next?
TBD. Similar to California, it’s the Seminole calling the shots. It’s also possible the tribe looks at launching online casino gambling in Florida before it decides it wants any outside help. But, given the Hard Rock grip over brick-and-mortar gaming in the state, it’s tough to say if or when a shakeup there could happen.
Florida Sports Betting: Notes and Quotes
Hard Rock has carved out a decent position for itself in the grand scheme of U.S. sports betting, which is largely due to its monopoly in Florida. For example, Citizens JMP Securities reported recently that the brand has an estimated 5% market share in U.S. sports betting.
It also appears that the Seminole and Hard Rock are using their Florida profits to try to expand outside the state. Case in point: 888 (now Evoke) sold its consumer-facing U.S. assets to Hard Rock Digital.
“Our team is gearing up for that next phase of growth around advocacy so that we can open up in new states, particularly the big (three) states in sports betting but also getting traction in iGaming,” FanDuel CEO Amy Howe.
