Mississippi’s Online Sports Betting Hopes Fade for 2025

Senate Rejects House Push

The Senate balked at the bill, and a conference committee, Senators Joey Fillingane, Mike Thompson, and David Blount, couldn’t bridge the gap. SB 2510 collapse, confirmed Monday night, kills both efforts this session, leaving sports betting stuck in brick-and-mortar casinos.

The Senate’s dug in. Senator David Blount, Gaming Committee chair, nixed the House’s move, saying no dice without a Mississippi Gaming Commission nod, which never came.

Fears of online betting eating into the state’s 13,000+ slot machines and $2.5 billion in 2024 casino cash, per MGC stats, held firm. The House saw $25 million in lost tax revenue yearly, per estimates, but couldn’t sway the upper chamber.

Sweepstakes Ban Dragged Down

SB 2510’s first draft, a unanimous Senate win, aimed to ban online sweepstakes casinos. The House’s sports betting add-on, penned by Rep. Casey Eure, sank it. “The Senate wouldn’t budge on online gambling,” a legislative aide told the Clarion Ledger.

Conference talks flopped, and sweepstakes stay legal, though regulators could still hit operators with cease-and-desists, like Maryland’s March move.

The tie-up cost a clean sweepstakes crackdown. States like Illinois and Florida push bans too, SB 1705 and SB 1404, but Mississippi’s sports betting detour stalled its shot.

Lawmakers agree sweepstakes are a problem; the Senate’s 51-0 vote showed that. Yet, bundling it with a divisive online betting pitch torched the plan.