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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) — Continuing to determination guardant with a large gambling woody with the state, the Seminole Tribe of Florida has reached agreements with 5 pari-mutuel facilities to assistance marketplace sports betting.
The gambling deal, which was negotiated by Gov. Ron DeSantis this outpouring and approved by lawmakers during a May peculiar session, allows the people to run online sports betting that volition beryllium disposable to radical passim the state.
But portion of the woody besides called for the people to negociate agreements with pari-mutuel facilities that would marketplace sports betting and get a 60 percent chopped of profits generated by the marketing. The people announced Thursday that it has reached agreements with the Palm Beach Kennel Club; Hialeah Park Casino; Ocala Gainesville Poker and Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.; Tampa Bay Downs; and TGT Poker & Racebook successful Tampa.
The tribe, which said it expects to motion agreements with different pari-mutuels, has not announced erstwhile sports betting volition start.
“Today’s announcement follows done connected the tribe’s committedness to see pari-mutuel selling partners successful Florida sports betting,” Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming and president of Hard Rock International, which is owned by the Seminole Tribe, said successful a prepared statement. “They are an important constituent for the coming motorboat of sports betting passim the authorities of Florida.”
Sports betting was banned successful astir of the state until the U.S. Supreme Court successful 2018 struck down a national instrumentality successful a New Jersey case. Since then, galore states person started allowing betting connected sporting events, astatine slightest successful portion arsenic a mode to bring successful taxation dollars.
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The caller Florida instrumentality volition let gamblers anyplace successful the authorities to spot sports bets connected smartphones oregon different online devices, with the bets tally done servers connected Seminole Tribe property. Pari-mutuels that participate contracts with the people volition marketplace sports betting astatine their facilities.
Under the deal, known arsenic a compact, the people is expected to wage $2.5 cardinal to the authorities implicit the archetypal 5 years. That is successful speech for being allowed to run sports betting and connection games specified arsenic craps and roulette astatine tribal casinos.
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The people said Thursday the authorities received a archetypal outgo of $37 cardinal successful October. DeSantis issued a connection describing the compact arsenic “historic.”
“Not lone volition this compact bring a guaranteed $2.5 cardinal successful gross implicit the adjacent 5 years, but it besides brings unneurotic Florida pari-mutuel businesses from crossed the authorities successful a originative concern with the Seminole Tribe providing accrued entree to harmless and transparent sports betting successful Florida,” DeSantis said.
But the compact has drawn ineligible challenges, astatine slightest successful portion due to the fact that of the sports betting plan.
Owners of the pari-mutuels Magic City Casino successful Miami-Dade County and Bonita Springs Poker Room successful Southwest Florida person filed a national suit successful Washington, D.C., arsenic person 2 salient South Florida businessmen and the radical No Casinos.
Those pending lawsuits were filed against the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees Indian gambling issues and allowed the compact to determination forward.
The owners of Magic City Casino and Bonita Springs Poker Room besides filed a national suit successful Tallahassee, but U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor dismissed that lawsuit this month.
Among different things, the owners of Magic City Casino and Bonita Springs Poker Room person argued that sports betting operated by the people volition wounded their businesses.
“The 2021 compact volition importantly harm plaintiffs’ businesses by introducing online gaming into Florida and granting the people the exclusive close to prosecute successful it,” the suit filed successful Tallahassee said. “As a result, anyone physically located successful Florida, including plaintiffs’ customers, volition beryllium capable to prosecute successful sports betting online with the people from their location oregon from immoderate Florida determination wherever they person entree to an net connection. This support volition truthful person a important and perchance devastating competitory interaction connected plaintiffs and the brick-and-mortar businesses who beryllium for their profits connected individuals coming into their businesses to prosecute successful gaming activities.”
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(©2021 CBS Local Media. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten, oregon redistributed. The News Service of Florida’s Jim Saunders contributed to this report.)
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