Sports betting legalization is a big topic at the OIGA annual convention this week.

Recent attempts to push through legal sports betting have been unsuccessful.

Tribes are willing to negotiate with the state once certain conditions are met.

Despite some false dawns, legal sports betting is still a far-off reality in Oklahoma. It is a major topic at the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association (OIGA) annual convention this week, with the big issue being an ongoing stand-off regarding state-tribal compacts.  

Attempts to push through legal sports betting have been unsuccessful over the past couple of years in the Legislature. Governor Kevin Stitt and tribal leaders have also long been at loggerheads due to attempts to renegotiate compacts.

the state may seek to renegotiate compacts if legal sports betting is added

OIGA Chair Matthew Morgan mentioned at the convention that sports betting has been a topic on everybody’s mind for the past three or four years. He acknowledged that the state may seek to renegotiate compacts if legal sports betting is added to the equation.

Oklahoma tribes give a revenue share to the state government in return for being able to offer certain types of casino gambling.

The OIGA chair believes three conditions need to be met if this is the case: he does not want existing compacts to suffer any harm, changes should be a supplement to existing agreements, and he said that the economics have to make sense as the tribes would be taking all the risk.