Minnesota Sports Betting

Editor’s note: As of Jan. 18, 2021

In September 2019, a group of Minnesota lawmakers loaded onto a bus for Iowa in hopes of resurrecting sports betting legislation in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

The trip south to the Diamond Jo Casino in Worth, Iowa, was to get a closer look at sports betting in action since legislation can’t seem to find traction in the Minnesota Legislature.

Both Minnesota Rep. Pat Garofalo, whose sports betting bill HF1278 hasn’t progressed, and Sen. Roger Chamberlain, who has a companion bill in the Senate, are frustrated their bills have stalled, while Iowa, a state with no professional sports teams, has opened its doors to Minnesotans crossing the state line to bet on the Vikings, Twins, and others.

When betting began this year in Iowa, a frustrated Garofalo tweeted: “A sportsbook in Iowa is having former MINNESOTA VIKING John Randle make their 1st bet. Not someone from Iowa, someone from MINNESOTA. Do elected officials in Minnesota now understand the consequences or refusing to take legislative action on sports gambling?!”

Among the issues for lawmakers are tribal interests who are not on the same page regarding sports betting. Eleven Native American tribes operate 21 casinos in the state and some fear mobile sports betting would be a serious threat to their bottom line, while other tribes say they would support betting if they can retain a monopoly.

So, obviously, there is work to be done in Minnesota but as long as we've been going - since 2019 - the prospect of legal sports wagering in the Gopher State hasn't seemed to have moved in any direction.

Is sports betting currently legal in the state?

No. Tribal concerns is the biggest roadblock to sports betting advancing in the state.

What about horse racing? 

Although legally available in the state, the operators that trade in the Gopher State and available via our site is limited to just one; Bet America.