Mississippi closes in on sports betting regulation
Mississippi has edged closer to legalising sports betting after regulators in the US state yesterday (Thursday) approved a set of new rules for such activities.
The Mississippi Gaming Commission unanimously voted in favour of the proposed changes and casinos could start taking sports bets as early as next month.
Mississippi expects to open a regulated market within the next 30 days, although some providers may require a licence before they can begin to offer services in the state.
According to the Associated Press, the proposed rules do not include some of the changes requested by professional sports leagues.
Basketball’s NBA, Major League Baseball and Golf’s PGA Tour had been keen for casinos to mostly use official data supplied by the leagues, as well as for the Commission to ban certain kinds of bets.
Casinos will pay state and local taxes of 12% on all wagers minus payouts, with permission to take wagers on any professional, college or Olympic sport.
The Commission has also requested that casinos report any suspicious bets in excess of $5,000 (€4,300), as well as gather detailed information on punters that bet or win more than $10,000.
The move comes after Mississippi last year changed its laws to allow sports betting as part of a bill legalising and regulating fantasy sports.
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