Hey Stan, You're In Ala-F'ing-Bama
The Poarch Creek Indians have hired a high-profile lobbying firm to ensure any gambling expansion in Alabama is on the tribal terms.
The Bulletin Board
NEWS: Gambling expansions will be on the menu in Alabama in 2025.
WEEKEND CATCHUP: Fertitta ups Wynn stake; Bally’s integrated app; Outlier + Soccer; Quote of the Week.
NEWS: Tribal implications as ND Gov. Burgum nominated to head up Interior.
VIEWS: Minnesota sports betting is far from a done deal.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: Highway robbery.
STRAY THOUGHTS: It’s the principle.
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Alabama Gambling Expansions Will Be a Hot Topic in 2025
The Poarch Creek Indians, one of the key stakeholders in Alabama’s efforts to expand legal gambling options, has hired a “high-powered” lobbying firm to ensure the 2025 bill meets all of its requirements. Alabama’s 2025 legislative session begins in early February.
1819 News quoted Kristin Hellmich, a PCI spokeswoman, who said, “I can confirm that Fine & Geddie now work with Poarch Creek. They are joining our team alongside Kinney & Barton and others who work with the Tribe on lobbying efforts.”
PCI opposed the final version of an often amended gambling expansion bill, SB 151. This bill would have authorized traditional lottery games and slot machines at select racetracks and locations and required the governor to negotiate a compact with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians.
Still, despite the tribe’s opposition, that bill passed the House but was not brought to the floor for a vote in the Senate. 1819 News intimated that it was one vote shy, which may explain why PCI is upping its lobbying presence.
“We continue to support a lottery and are optimistic that our legislature will find a way to pass a clear and complete gaming bill that regulates, controls, and taxes gaming businesses, and that also reflects the values of our State,” PCI said in a May statement.
The million-dollar question is, will anything get done? There is a desire, but as I’ve said in the past, we’re talking about Alabama here.
A recent opinion column in the Alabama Political Reporter called the state of gambling in Alabama “absurd.”
“It must be nice to have lawmakers who understand the realities of gambling in this country (and that includes Alabama), who aren’t afraid to let the market work and allow willing and capable companies to construct destination resorts in their states,” investigative reporter Josh Moon wrote.
Weekend Catchup: Fertitta Ups Wynn Stake; Bally’s Integrated App; Outlier + Soccer; Quote of the Week
Tilman Fertitta increases Wynn stake: Tilman Fertitta, who owns the Houston Rockets, Landry’s Restaurants, and the Golden Nugget Casino, has increased his ownership in Wynn Resorts to 9.9%, but at least one industry analyst doesn’t see it as a takeover attempt. “Some of the ideas that surfaced include a strategic merger with Landry’s-Golden Nugget, monetizing the Wynn real estate, exiting Macao, or expanding the Wynn brand across the US,” John DeCree, an analyst with CBRE Equity Research wrote. “We explore some of these concepts in this report, but if Fertitta were to make a move, it would likely need to be an outright bid for the company given the complexities of the board and fragmented shareholder base that would make a proxy fight difficult.”
Bally’s launches integrated sports betting-casino app in New Jersey: With the launch of its integrated sports betting and casino app in New Jersey, Bally’s took a big step forward as it looks to carve out some market share in the US online gambling market. “This unified platform combines our existing apps’ features and functionality, offering New Jersey players a seamless sports and casino betting experience, Brett Calapp, Chief Operating Officer of North America Interactive for Bally’s, said. “Enhancing the player experience remains a crucial focus in personalizing the fun while playing Bally Bet.”
Sports betting research platform Outlier adds Soccer markets: Sports betting research platform Outlier has added soccer (EPL, Bundesliga, La Liga, and more) to its offerings, which also includes NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA, and NHL. “We built soccer with a focus on the US bettor, and we received hundreds of requests from our users to build soccer in our product because they wanted to research those markets,” Outlier CEO Evan Kirkham told SBC Americas. “So, we listened and we did it with plans to also launch in the UK by the end of the year.” If you’d like to learn more about Outlier, Kirkham is this week’s guest on the Straight to the Point Talking Shop podcast, which will be available to all on Saturday.
Quote of the Week: “Without gubernatorial leadership, the legislature won’t do it because they’re pulled, like taffy, in too many directions by too many different interests. Without the governor pushing for it, I don’t think it’ll happen.” ~ Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on the possibility of California sports betting.
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ND Gov. Nominated to Head Interior Department
The gambling universe scored a significant victory on election day when Missouri voters (narrowly) legalized sports betting. However, I highlighted another significant result before and after November 5, as the results of the presidential election would also decide who heads up the Department of Interior.
Pre-election, I wrote:
Who will head up the Department of Interior?
Gambling is usually a state issue, but the presidential election could shape the future of tribal gaming for years to come.
The Biden administration has been a welcome relief for tribes, with Interior Secretary Deb Haaland siding with tribes on numerous issues, including the Florida mobile betting compact, several land-in-trust disputes, and the new rules from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
One of my post-election thoughts was, “Keep an eye on who Trump appoints as Secretary of the Interior.”
We now know who that will be, as North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum has been tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to head up the Department of Interior.
Burgum’s appointment is energy-related, signaling a shift from the Biden administration’s focus on renewable energy to Trump’s promise to return to a “drill baby drill” policy. Still, part of Burgum’s responsibility as Secretary of Interior is overseeing the 570-plus federally recognized tribes.
The good news is that Burgum doesn’t have an adversarial history with tribes. He signed multiple pro-tribal pieces of legislation while serving as the governor of North Dakota and is unlikely to roll back any progress made during Secretary Deb Haaland’s tenure. The real question is whether he will continue moving forward.
Under Haaland, the Interior signed-off on the Seminole-Florida compact (specifically by not signing it) and vigorously defended it against challenges.
The DOI also sided with tribes in land-in-trust disputes and oversaw the Bureau of Indian Affairs' rules changes, which removed obstacles, streamlined the process, and made it Department policy to support land-in-trust claims. The new rules also pave the way for more Seminole-Florida-like online gambling compacts.
Minnesota Sports Betting “Deal” Is Quite Messy
I keep seeing the word “deal” used to describe Minnesota’s failed sports betting efforts this year, and in the words of Inigo Montoya, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
What everyone using the word “deal” seems to mean is the foundation for an agreement.
According to the Minnesota Post, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Matt Klein thinks the deal he helped negotiate in May is still the basis for a long-coming agreement.
“I’ve been in close communication with the tribes and tracks, and all parties still support the end-of-session deal,” Klein said via text message. “It’s my hope that we can get bipartisan authorship on a bill that reflects that deal. I’ve reached out to GOP legislators in the House and Senate with that offer, which I think would smooth the path for the bill and avoid the end-of-session scramble we’ve historically experienced.”
Klein also noted that because of anti-online gambling voices in his party, sports betting requires Republican support to pass the bill, as the DFL no longer controls the House, which will be evenly split (best case for the DFL) or tip towards Republicans following two recounts.
Republican support exists but isn’t guaranteed. Minnesota lost Rep. Pat Garafolo, a Republican, who led prior sports betting efforts. Garafolo is being replaced by Rep. Nolan West, who supports legalization but has some issues with the current “deal.”
Per the Minnesota Post, Rep. West:
“Called the May bill a good starting point that he has some issues with — particularly how it places daily fantasy games, which are already legal, into the same tribal exclusivity framework as sports betting would be placed.”
Both Klein and West used the word hope (read my previous entry on speaking politician), with West adding, “But this is a very difficult and circular issue.”
The Post also threw some cold water on the recent letter from Running Aces (which I threw cold water on last week) as the racetrack wants the ability to possess a sports betting license, which was not part of the May “deal.”
Running Aces CEO Taro Ito said it was neutral on the May bill, claiming it “violates fairness and public opinion by giving sports betting licenses only to tribes.”
“All we ever wanted was a fair deal. We never wanted to be obstructionists and not have sports betting,” Ito said. “But we certainly would never agree to a deal that made no sense. That’s what I was trying to convey in that letter.”
The STTP Forecast (a premium subscription available here) has Minnesota sports betting trending positive, but the main structural hurdle, a stakeholder divide, still exists, and the changed makeup of the House presents a new unknown.
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Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
I didn’t see much about the decision on Sports Betting Twitter, but regular X was up in arms about the judging in the Amanda Serrano-Katie Taylor co-main event fight.
Everyone’s eyes knew who won the fight, and as Serrano posted on X, the numbers are pretty clear-cut, too.
Stray Thoughts
This tweet aligns with something I often harp on: Principle beats technique. I might change chaos to the unexpected, but the point remains: hope, plan for the best, and prepare for the worst.