Florida Retail + Online Sports Betting Goes Live Thursday

• Florida’s full sports betting launch begins Thursday, with Hard Rock Bet accepting online wagers from all Florida residents.
• Hard Rock Casinos are opening their retail sportsbooks, in addition to launching craps and roulette.
• The full sports betting launch happens despite West Flagler associates’ ongoing lawsuits in the Florida Supreme Court.

MIAMI – Thursday marks the first time Florida has online and retail sports betting since 2021. The Hard Rock Bet app opened up full access to Florida residents, while their casinos launch in-person sports betting beginning Thursday.

Although the full legal Florida sports betting launch was planned for Thursday, President of Hard Rock Bet Matt Primeaux ended the app’s early access period Tuesday morning. Before Primeaux’s decision to turn off the early access period, only players who signed up for the app back in 2021 had access to bet since Nov. 7.

Hard Rock has a list of celebrities, including DJ Khaled and Mike Tyson, to walk the red carpet at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Hard Rock wants to celebrate a “New Era” of gaming in Florida, as Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr. calls it, across all of Hard Rock’s casinos.

It’s official: Hard Rock Bet is legal in Florida and live for betting from anywhere in the state!

No more betting inside your head 🤘 pic.twitter.com/qEjPI49EwB

— Hard Rock Bet (@HardRockBet) December 7, 2023

The Hard Rock Bet “X” account announced that legal sports betting is now available to all eligible Florida residents. However, the legal journey for sports betting to return to the Sunshine State hasn’t been easy.

Florida’s Sports Betting Journey Comes To Fruition

It all started in 2021 when Florida approved a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe that gave them exclusive rights to retail and online sports betting. The gaming compact allowed for the Tribe to offer sports betting outside of tribal lands through a “hub-and-spoke” system, which was later determined to be in violation of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) by District Judge Dabney L. Friedrich.

However, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that decision in July, making it possible for Florida sports betting to launch again after overcoming challenges in the United States Supreme Court. A group of parimutuels continue to challenge the legality of Florida online sports betting in the state’s Supreme Court.

News tags: Florida | Hard Rock | Hard Rock Bet | Ron DeSantis | Seminole Tribe | West Flagler