The Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC) Thursday opened the application window for sports betting entities and posted applications for operators and suppliers, including those offering official league data.
Operators can apply for retail or digital licenses. There are two kinds of digital licenses. One is tethered to an existing casino or qualified professional sports venue. The other is for two standalone mobile betting licenses, referred to as a Direct Mobile License, that will be available.
Operators applying for either of the two Direct Mobile Licenses must submit applications by July 15 and will be offered the opportunity to appear before the MGC on Aug. 13. Those licenses will be awarded Aug. 15, according to the agency’s website.
All other licensees must submit applications by Sept. 12. The MGC did not specify when it would award those licenses but noted on its site that any applicant by the deadline will be approved in time for a Dec. 1 universal launch date.
Dec. 1 is a Monday, which means the first opportunity for those in Missouri to bet on the Kansas City Chiefs will be the following weekend, when they play host to the Houston Texans in a Sunday night game. Regarding the state’s other major pro teams, the St. Louis Blues and the Kansas City Royals, the NHL has not released its 2025-26 schedule and baseball season will be completed.
Detailed information required
The timeline from voter approval to launch will be just over a year. That timeframe is well within what regulators in other states have experienced. While some launched on a shorter timeline — in 2019, Iowa went from legal to live in three months and Indiana in four months — most states need between six and 12 months.
Missouri’s regulator tried to shorten the timeframe, but the secretary of state in February denied a request for emergency rules.
“The process is very detailed by design, because we want to make sure that the people who get a license in the state of Missouri are people who should get a license,” Chair Jan Zimmerman told KSHB 41 Kansas City. “… It takes that long to get all of the information that we need, get the Ts crossed and the Is dotted, to make sure that we’re issuing the licenses appropriately.”
As is standard fare in most jurisdictions, applicants must divulge if they have been denied or had a license suspended in any U.S. jurisdiction. It does not appear that applicants must disclose if they have been fined anywhere else.
Applicants are also required to list other U.S. jurisdictions in which they are licensed and provide proof. Those applying for tethered retail or digital licenses must also provide proof of a partnership.
Missouri voters narrowly approved legal sports betting last November.
The state has 13 retail casinos and six qualified professional sports teams. The MGC did not indicate how many digital licenses it would issue. Last fall, ahead of the election, the MGC said the state attorney general interpreted the initiative language to allow each land-based casino to have a partner. If that is the case, there could be up to 21 online platform licenses available.
Applicants must explain how they will finance sportsbook operations. For retail spaces, they must provide detailed information about location, access for those with disabilities, and how “the proposed layout prevents access to individuals under twenty-one years of age.”
Selected additional requirements
In addition to operator and supplier licenses, there are five occupational license applications addressing different situations available on the site.
Below is a look at some additional requirements for those applying for operator licenses:
- As per the regulations, the application and annual renewal fee for retail licenses is $250,000, and the application and annual renewal fee for digital licenses is $500,000. The MGC will invoice applicants. Unlike in other states, the application fee does not appear to be due on submission.
- Applications must be mailed or delivered to the Missouri Gaming Commission office. It does not appear that e-mailed or online applications will be accepted.
- Operator applicants must provide an executive organizational chart as well as authorize background checks on principal owners.
- Financial documents ranging from investments to bank statements and tax returns from the last three years must be provided and/or the MGC must be given permission to obtain them.
