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Sports betting in Missouri will officially kick off later this year, and we now know one of the top sportsbooks that will be a player in the state. That would be BetMGM, which is partnering with Century Casinos ahead of the sports betting launch in the Show Me State. 

When it comes to this BetMGM announcement, it's worth noting Century Casinos operates two of the state's 13 casinos: Century Casino & Hotel Cap Girardeau and Century Casino Caruthersville. This agreement paves the way for BetMGM to operate in-person at both casinos and to take wagers via online sports betting. BetMGM will pay Century Casinos a percentage of the sports betting revenue it receives, and Century Casinos will decide what the in-person sportsbooks offer to bettors. 

Missouri voters approved sports betting last November, albeit by a razor-thin margin. The ballot measure set things up for both in-person sports betting and online sports betting to be legal in Missouri by Dec. 1, 2025. While there had been some thought and hope sports betting would begin before then, especially with the NFL season kicking off in September and Missouri having one of the most popular teams in the Kansas City Chiefs, it was recently announced that the Dec. 1 deadline will instead mark the start of sports betting in Missouri. 

The Missouri Gaming Commission, which is in charge of all sports betting licensing, began the betting license application process earlier this month, and review and background check processes are expected to begin in September. There will be two independent licenses issued to sportsbooks, and it's likely DraftKings and FanDuel will be applying for those licenses. 

Sportsbooks that don't receive those two independent licenses will either need to partner with casinos, like BetMGM has with Century Casinos, or with professional sports teams in the state, as all six of Missouri's professional sports teams will receive sportsbook licenses to use in their "districts" near their stadiums/arenas. We've already seen one such instance, as bet365 partnered with the St. Louis Cardinals ahead of the 2025 MLB regular season. 

Outside of the Cardinals and Chiefs, Missouri's other pro teams are the Kansas City Royals (MLB), Kansas City Current (NWSL), St. Louis Blues (NHL) and St. Louis City SC (MLS).