Sports betting is coming to the Bluegrass State this year. It’s just a matter of when.
Kentucky sports betting was officially legalized when Gov. Andy Beshear signed HB 551 at the end of March.
However, unlike other states, Kentucky’s legislation put a deadline on the industry’s launch. Once the bill is enacted as law by the Attorney General, regulators have six months before operators can start taking bets.
In most other situations, the states enact legislation that lacks a timeline. Let alone a deadline.
Attorney General Daniel Cameron will enact the law on June 28. That’s when the clock starts ticking. Therefore, the latest Kentucky launch date would be Dec. 28.
But that’s the deadline. Kentucky could start taking wagers before that. Beshear himself wants to see Kentuckians betting on this year’s NFL games.
Launch dates are rarely random. Even dates that don’t correlate with sporting events have some significance. For example, Ohio launched on New Year’s Day.
These are five dates that make sense for a Kentucky sports betting launch.
Week 1 of the 2023 NFL Season
This is the date Beshear is shooting for. Since it’s what the governor wants, it’s reasonable to think he might get it.
Beshear is the most pro-gambling governor in the history of the state. One of the cornerstones of his 2019 campaign was gambling expansion. During it, he advocated for the legalization of both sports betting and casino gaming.
I don’t think there’s a gambling bill that gets to his desk that he wouldn’t sign. But his target date isn’t about sports bettors’ desire to bet on the NFL. It’s about tax revenue.
The 2023 season starts Sept. 7
The NFL hasn’t released their full 2023 schedule just yet. But we know that the season’s first game is Thursday, Sept. 7, in Kansas City. The Detroit Lions travel to the face-off against the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs.
The start of the NFL season typically marks a huge seasonal uptick in sports betting. This seasonal trend is the result of a few reasons.
First, everyone loves the NFL. As a result, everyone loves betting on the NFL. Despite having the shortest season of all four major American sports, it’s the most heavily bet.
Secondly, the NFL season kicks off in the fall. The fall season is the busiest part of the sports calendar. Major League Baseball is in its home stretch and playoff run, college football starts, and by October, the NHL and NBA are underway.
With all those sports to bet on, sports betting handle increases just before winter sets in. An increased betting handle leads to increased revenue for sportsbooks.
That revenue turns into tax revenue for the state. And with lawmakers using sports betting to alleviate Kentucky’s pension shortfalls, the governor wants as much tax revenue as possible.
The start of the college football season
Beshear’s hope for NFL betting let regulators know he wants this process to move as quick as possible. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, which was tasked with overseeing the new industry, will be looking to streamline the regulatory and licensing process.
The college football season typically starts a little earlier than the NFL does. So, if regulators are moving at breakneck speeds, they may greenlight the industry even earlier.
Season kicks off Aug. 26, University of Kentucky’s first game is Sept. 2
From a Kentucky sports fan perspective, the college season might be more enjoyable for them. Kentucky has no professional sports franchise in any of the four major leagues.
Consequently, most sports fans in the state have more vigor in rooting for local college programs like the University of Kentucky or Louisville.
The University of Kentucky Wildcats football team open their 2023 campaign on Sept. 2 against Ball State. If Kentucky has a sports betting industry by then and, say, BetMGM Kentucky is live, the handle on that game would be huge.
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The start of college basketball season
Everybody loves football. But Kentucky loves college basketball. If regulators can’t launch for the start of football season, ensuring a full season of college basketball betting would be the next best thing.
College basketball usually begins around the first week of November. The state would still capture the second half of the NFL, giving bettors a full slate of basketball and hockey games.
I know I was envisioning a massive handle for college football. But that number could be larger for the University of Kentucky men’s basketball opener.
RELATED: 62,000 Kentuckians Tried Betting On March Madness This Year
November 23, 2023
The date might look obscure by itself. But that is the date Thanksgiving falls on this year.
And what could Kentucky gamblers be more thankful for than the launch of Kentucky sportsbooks?
At this point, the deadline is about a month away anyway. If it doesn’t launch by Thanksgiving, the deadline probably becomes the launch date.
But a Thanksgiving launch date comes with some perks. It’s a culturally significant day, which can add some hype to the launch. But there are also a few NFL games on the schedule.
The market can still bet on nearly the entire professional and college basketball season, the final few weeks of the NFL and the very end of college football.
December 28, 2023
This date seems self-explanatory at this point because the law mandates the industry to launch by then.
Given how much support there is for an early launch, this does seem like one of the least likely dates. However, if it does get all the way to the deadline, that means there could have been some problems or delays along the way.
It won’t be anything the consumer would feel. And all the big dogs, like DraftKings Kentucky, would still be available. It just might take longer to get there.
