Mark Cuban Stepping Back on His Texas Sports Betting Stance is a Concern

What does the future have in store for the Texas sports betting push? This is something people have been keeping a close eye on for a while now, One of the biggest proponents out there has been the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. However, Mark Cuban stepping back on his Texas sports betting stance is a concern for a lot of people. Could this hurt things overall moving forward?

In a recent interview, Cuban stated that he’s ready to go all-in on the efforts to bring a casino/resort to the Dallas area. Cuban has seen the kind of impact a casino and resort has had on other states, as they make a big-time difference when people start to plan their vacations. Cuban wants to see Texas become competitive from a tourism standpoint with other states. However, the concern here is that it looks like he’s putting betting on the back burner.

“When you get a world-class partner who can come in and grow your revenue base and you’re not dependent on things that you were in the past, that’s a huge win,” Cuban told reporters on selling Mavs shares. “Patrick and Miriam, they’re the best in the world at what they do. Literally, around the world. Honestly, I don’t care so much about sports betting. If you look at destination resorts and casinos, the casino part of it is tiny, relative to the whole bigger destination aspect of it.”

This is not the kind of quote that people were hoping to see out of Cuban. While his resort idea is brilliant and it will bring a lot of people to the state, the hope was that he’d find a way to get sports betting and casino betting involved as well. Cuban is still going to try and get things across the line here, but the fact that he’s not as all-in as he used to be most definitely has a lot of people talking.

Texas is expecting a ton of illegal activity for the NFL postseason

With things up in the air about betting for the future, it’s safe to say that Texas is expecting a ton of illegal activity for the NFL postseason. Just recently, there were a lot of illegal wagers placed on the College Football Playoff, as the Texas Longhorns took on the University of Washington in the semifinals. Unfortunately for people all over Texas, Washington came away with a close win.

Now, the focus for fans is the NFL betting odds – more specifically with the Dallas Cowboys getting ready to take on the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Wild Card Round. The Cowboys are the No. 2 seed, while the Packers are the No. 7 seed. Dallas was able to win the NFC East title on Sunday after taking down the Commanders. Not only that, but the Eagles suffered yet another loss, this time to the New York Giants. Now, Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and others are playing with a ton of confidence.

“I don’t think there’s another quarterback and receiver that has put in as much time as me and CeeDee have, going back into the offseason,” Prescott said on the growth for this team during the 2023 season. “Understanding what I expect of him. Him understanding where I’m going to put the ball. Him understanding the belief that I have in him. I’ve told you I think he’s the best receiver in the game.”

According to the best-rated sportsbooks, the Cowboys hold strong odds to take down the Packers in the opening round of the postseason. Not only that, but Dallas fans are consistently checking the Super Bowl betting odds to see how the Cowboys are looking compared to other squads. Right now, the 49ers, Ravens, Cowboys and Chiefs hold the top odds. Will Dallas be able to win their first Super Bowl title in nearly 30 years? You can’t rule that out at all.

Jerry Jones hasn’t changed his stance on Texas sports betting

Fortunately for Texas sports betting proponents, Jerry Jones hasn’t changed his stance on Texas sports betting. Jones, like Cuban, has been speaking highly on the sports betting push for a while now, as he knows how much potential there is for the state from a revenue standpoint. Also, Jones has been open about his desire to get the Cowboys organization involved with future efforts too. Could you imagine if people made their way to AT&T Stadium and could place in-person bets there?

It’d be massive, which is something Jones is keeping an eye on. As things stand, the hope is that legal wagers will be on the way for people to take advantage of by early 2025. Could January of next year be when things are finalized and put in place? This is the hope for a lot of people, but it’s totally up in the air if the legislation will be able to get things figured out by then or not. Jones would be all for it to go down. We’ll find out soon if it does.

Peter Lewis

Peter Lewis Jr. comes from Mississippi where he and his family spend their days discussing college football, baseball and basketball. He's written sports journalism for years after studying journalism at a local university. Over time, Peter has cultivated extensive knowledge covering sports betting legislation across the country. He closely tracks the latest...

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