Barstool, Caesars, DraftKings Among Operators Approved for Kansas Sports Betting

Regulated sports wagering debuts in Kansas on Sept. 1, with mobile betting following on Sept. 8. In advance of those launches, the Kansas Lottery announced the initial batch of operators approved in the state.

Kansas sportsbook
Cars race on the Hollywood Casino at Kansas Motor Speedway, above. The venue will be home to one of several Kansas sportsbooks. (Image: Belleville News-Democrat)

Those gaming companies are as follows: Barstool Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, FanDuel, and PointsBet.

After Governor Laura Kelly’s announcement last week that sports wagering in Kansas will begin with a soft launch starting at noon on Thursday, September 1st, followed by a full opening on September 8th, the Kansas Lottery is pleased to announce which sports wagering platforms will be available to the public on launch day,” according to a statement issued by Kansas Lottery.

Under the recently signed legislation, each state-regulated casino will be eligible to open brick-and-mortar sportsbooks while offering up to three mobile betting platforms.

Kansas Capturing Football Season

Kansas bettors will be able to place wagers at retail sportsbooks starting Sept. 1, meaning they can wager on that weekend’s slate of college football games, should they so choose. The commercial casinos in Kansas are Boyd Gaming’s Kansas Star, Penn National Gaming’s Hollywood, and the Prairie Band Casino & Resort. The Golden Eagle is a tribal gaming venue.

When sports wagering debuts in the state on Sept. 1, the time from passage of legislation to going live and legal will be less than 90 days. To date, that’s a record since the 2018 Supreme Court ruling on the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA).

With the Sept. 1 start date, Kansas will only be without mobile wagering for one week of the 2022 college football season and will capture all of this year’s NFL campaign. That’s relevant to state coffers because football is the most wagered-on sport in the US.

Forecasts indicate sports betting could create $1 million to $5 million in new revenue for Kansas.

Exploring Kansas Sports Betting Partnerships

Not surprisingly, Penn Entertainment’s Hollywood Casino in Kansas City will have a Barstool Sportsbook, which will also be the operator’s mobile platform. Penn Entertainment owns Barstool Sports.

FanDuel — the largest online sportsbook operator in the US — is partnering with Kansas Star Casino. Boot Hill Casino and Resort in Dodge City is teaming up with DraftKings.

“Kansas Crossing Casino in Pittsburg will offer mobile sports betting through BetMGM, Caesars, and PointsBet, with an in-person sports wagering date to be announced in the near future. In the interim, players are still welcome to visit Kansas Crossing Casino and place wagers via a mobile application while there,” according to Kansas Lottery.

Todd Shriber
Todd Shriber Financial Reporter

Todd Shriber is a senior news reporter covering gaming financials, casino business, stocks, and mergers and acquisitions for Casino.org.

Todd got his start in financial markets as a reporter with Bloomberg News. Later, he became a trader at a Southern California-based long/short hedge fund, where he specialized in the trading sector and international ETFs leading up to and during the financial crisis. He joined Casino.org in 2019.

Currently, Todd analyzes, researches, and writes on ETFs for various web-based publications and financial services firms. Shriber has been featured and quoted in Barron's, CNBC.com, and The Wall Street Journal. His work can also be found on Benzinga, ETF Daily News, ETF Trends, MarketWatch, Fox Business, and Nasdaq.com.

He currently resides in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golf and taking his black lab to the dog park. He's also an avid sports fan and likes to wager on college football and the NBA. You can also find him at the three-card poker and roulette table, even though he knows better.

Contact Todd at todd.shriber@casino.org.

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