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New Sports Betting States in 2027: Who Could Legalize and Who Won’t

By American.Bet TeamUpdated Oct 31, 202621+
New Betting States in 2027: the US Capitol dome in black and white, inside an outline map of the United States

Missouri was the last state to switch on legal sportsbooks, and almost a year later nobody has followed it. As of October 2026, the map of legal online sports betting looks much as it did when Missouri went live in December 2025, and our read is that 2027 adds one new state at most. The bigger fight is now over prediction markets, which already take sports trades in states that never voted to allow betting.

In this article 7 sections

Missouri sports betting after year one: big handle, thin tax

Missouri is the case study every holdout legislature will read before it votes. The Missouri Gaming Commission’s fiscal 2026 report shows $543 million wagered in December 2025 alone. Once winnings and promotional credits were deducted, taxable revenue that month was negative $20.8 million, and the state collected $521,324 in tax. Over the first six months, December through May, Missourians bet $2.06 billion. That produced $45.1 million in taxable revenue and $8.2 million in tax at the state’s 10% rate.

Lawmakers noticed. KCUR reported that operators gave away more than $125 million in free bets and promotions in the first month. State Sen. Rusty Black asked whether the returns matched “the commercials that got this passed.” A bill to lift the effective rate to 34% gained little traction, but the anger behind it has not gone away.

By September the state had collected about $11 million against a first-year goal of $25 million, according to KFVS. Gaming Commission executive director Mike Leara said the commission expects “the rest of that 14 million to probably come through.” Our read: the monthly tax line is finally steady at around $2 million, but the opening months gave skeptics in Georgia, Texas and Alabama a ready-made talking point. Readers in the state can compare licensed apps on our Missouri sportsbooks page.

The 2026 sessions: Georgia, Oklahoma and Alabama stall again

Georgia came closest to a vote and lost badly. On Crossover Day, March 6, 2026, the House defeated HR 450, the constitutional amendment that would have sent sports betting to voters, by 63 to 98, and its companion bill, HB 686, fell the same day. An amendment needs two-thirds of both chambers, and opposition came from both parties for different reasons. Supporters still point to polling suggesting an amendment would pass if it ever reached the ballot. The problem is getting it there.

Oklahoma failed again too. The Senate narrowly killed a bill for retail betting at tribal casinos and statewide mobile wagering, and a separate referral, HB 1101, which the House had passed 66 to 29 in 2025, died when the Legislature adjourned on May 14, 2026 without a Senate floor vote. Tribal exclusivity remains the central issue there, and we leave that thread to our tribal gaming coverage.

Alabama did not even try. Any gambling expansion needs a constitutional amendment backed by 21 of 35 senators and 63 of 105 House members, and Sen. Greg Albritton told reporters: “I don’t have the votes.” Gov. Kay Ivey leaves office in 2027, and a new governor is the only obvious reason the math could change. California voters rejected sports wagering in 2022, and South Carolina and Utah also remain without legal online sportsbooks.

Texas sports betting and the 2027 session

Texas is the one holdout with a full session coming. The 90th Legislature convenes in January 2027, and the history is not encouraging for sportsbooks: the House passed a sports betting proposal in 2023 and the Senate rejected it. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who controls the Senate, has been the main obstacle.

What has changed is the target. Patrick’s 2026 interim charges told the State Affairs Committee to “study the sudden inundation of prediction market gambling” and “the exploitation of federal law to circumvent Texas gambling prohibitions.” The committee, chaired by Sen. Bryan Hughes, took up that charge at a September 15 hearing. Patrick has said the Senate “will move quickly” on these priorities, per Covers.

Our read: the Texas Senate in 2027 is far more likely to pass restrictions on prediction markets than a constitutional amendment for sportsbooks. Follow developments on our Texas hub.

Nebraska’s November ballot is the 2027 wildcard

The only realistic route to a new online betting state next year runs through voters, not statehouses. On November 3, Nebraskans decide Initiative Measure 440, a constitutional amendment letting the Legislature authorize online wagering through operators at licensed racetracks, and Measure 441, the companion statute. Measure 441 allows up to two platforms per operator, requires servers inside Nebraska and gives the State Racing and Gaming Commission until June 1, 2027 to adopt rules.

The money is lopsided. The yes campaign reported $16.4 million in contributions through September 29, including $9.54 million from DK Crown Holdings and $7.04 million from FanDuel. The opposition reported $1.03 million. Two other referrals never made it: Oklahoma’s, above, and South Dakota’s SJR 504, which cleared the Senate 23 to 10 in February but not the House.

Prediction markets are changing the politics of legalization

For years the argument in holdout states was simple: residents bet anyway, so regulate and tax it. Prediction markets have scrambled that. Sports event contracts on federally regulated exchanges are available in states with no sportsbooks, and lawmakers now face a choice between legalizing and taxing, or trying to ban.

Minnesota chose the ban. Its Legislature passed a felony prohibition on prediction markets 57 to 9 in the Senate and 100 to 32 in the House, set to take effect August 1, 2026. Gov. Tim Walz signed it, and on May 19 the CFTC sued. Chairman Michael Selig said the law “turns lawful operators and participants in prediction markets into felons overnight.” In late July, U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez blocked the ban, finding Kalshi, Polymarket and the federal government likely to succeed on preemption under the Commodity Exchange Act, while warning that any permanent relief “may be much narrower.” Minnesota still has no legal sportsbooks, which tells you where its lawmakers’ energy went. See our Minnesota page for the latest.

The CFTC has been suing states all year. It filed against Arizona, Connecticut and Illinois on April 2, and against Utah on October 26, six days after Utah went to state court against Kalshi. Our read is that this cuts two ways. In states that want the tax revenue, prediction markets strengthen the case for licensed sportsbooks. In states that never wanted gambling, they give legislators a new enemy to campaign against, and a ban is easier to pass than a constitutional amendment.

What to expect in 2027

  • Nebraska is the most likely new online state, if Measures 440 and 441 pass on November 3. With a June 1, 2027 rulemaking deadline, we would not expect apps before the second half of 2027.
  • We expect no legislature to legalize online sports betting in 2027. Georgia’s 63 to 98 defeat and Alabama’s missing votes leave no holdout with a working majority.
  • Texas is more likely to act on prediction markets than sportsbooks. The Senate’s interim charge and September hearing point to a restriction bill early in the 90th session.
  • More states copy Minnesota, and more get sued. Expect the CFTC to keep filing preemption suits as it did against Minnesota and Utah.
  • Missouri’s tax fight returns. If the $25 million first-year target is missed, the 34% proposal or something like it comes back.
  • Minnesota’s case is likely to become the test for whether a state can ban federally regulated event contracts outright.

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Further reading on American.Bet

Will Texas legalize sports betting in 2027?

We think it is unlikely. The 2027 Senate agenda set by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick focuses on restricting prediction markets, and the Senate rejected the House-passed sports betting proposal in 2023.

Which state could be the next to launch online sports betting?

Nebraska, if voters approve Measures 440 and 441 on November 3, 2026. Regulators would have until June 1, 2027 to adopt rules, so a launch would likely come later in 2027.

Did Minnesota ban prediction markets like Kalshi?

Minnesota passed a ban in May 2026, but a federal judge blocked it in July before it took effect, finding the challengers likely to win on federal preemption. The case continues.

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