No support

A sports betting initiative in California has come to an end as a result of tribal opposition and a lack of support.

Gaming industry veteran Kasey Thompson and blockchain entrepreneur Reeve Collins presented the initiatives last year to legalize sports betting in the Sunshine State. Thompson explained that the main goal of the initiatives was to benefit the tribes in the state; however, he later concluded that it was actually dividing them.

I see now the needed unity is not coming”

Speaking on the matter, Thompson said: “I see now the needed unity is not coming, and so I’m standing good to my word and not moving forward.”

Thompson and Collins, who published the two proposals 23-0030 Amendment 1 and Initiative 23-0031, were attempting to get the legislation on the November 2024 ballot, meaning they had until April to secure 874,641 valid signatures.

Thompson was also ready to print around 1.2 million petitions to be signed by Californians to push the initiatives through.

Opposition from state tribes

The duo proposed giving exclusivity to state tribes to offer retail and online sports betting on their land, with 25% of profits going to non-gaming tribes. If the initiatives were passed, they would create $50m for every California tribe in the first five years of legal betting, according to Thompson.

opposition from the state’s three biggest native American groups

Yet, despite this, the duo failed to get the backing from the tribes, facing continued opposition from the state’s three biggest native American groups. Realizing they weren’t going to get any further, Thompson and Collins decided to withdraw the proposals this week.

Unsure future

It remains to be seen if legal sports betting will eventually occur in California. It’s certainly been a hot topic of discussion since the ending of the federal ban in May 2018, particularly because California is the most populated state with 38 million residents.

Yet, without the tribes supporting such measures, it seems as though there will be an uphill battle for any initiative to gain significant traction.

the state’s tribes vehemently opposed Proposition 27

One measure that appeared to be going in the right direction was Proposition 27, led by FanDuel and DraftKings. However, the state’s tribes vehemently opposed Proposition 27, spending around $180m to cancel it. In November 2022, 83% of votes went against it. Notably, the tribe-backed Proposition 26 was also rejected, despite getting a lot more votes.