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The Washington Huskies open the season this weekend vs. Weber State. It’s a gimme game, sure, but it’s also a massive one in the history of the program. It’s the first matchup since losing the national title game. It’s the first matchup with their new head coach. And it’s the first game in its new conference.
But if you live in the Pacific Northwest state, chances are you won’t be able to bet on it. That’s because betting in Washington is legal, just not easily accessible or overly open. Back in 2020, Washington rolled the dice and legalized sports betting — but with a big catch. All bets must be placed on tribal lands, whether you’re going old-school at a casino or using a sports betting app. You can place a bet online, sure, but your feet better be planted firmly on tribal property.
This is not ideal by any means. Most of the casinos are located far away from Seattle, where a giant chunk of the population. Plus, who wants to drive somewhere to make a bet every single time when you can use mobile betting apps to wager whenever and wherever?
But then again, beggars can’t be choosers. The fact that Washington came around on the issue was a win in its own right. Before this, the state was known for its ironclad anti-gambling stance. In fact, breaking Washington’s gambling laws is still treated as a Class C felony.
But we’ve now reached the point where betting expansion makes sense. When, if ever, will Washington loosen its grip on sports betting? Let’s try to find out.
Recent Push To Expand Dies
Many of the major operators you’ve heard of are available in Washington state. These operators have partnered with local tribal casinos to offer betting in those specific locations, not on statewide apps. Here’s how the market looks:
- Betfred Sportsbook: Partnered with Silver Reef Casino Resort.
- BetMGM Sportsbook: Partnered with Emerald Queen casinos in Tacoma and Fife.
- Caesars Sportsbook: Partnered with Chewelah Casino, Muckleshoot Casino, Spokane Tribe Casino.
- DraftKings Sportsbook: Partnered with Quil Ceda Creek Casino and Tulalip Resort Casino.
- FanDuel Sportsbook: Partnered with Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort.
- Unibet Sportsbook: Partnered with Swinomish Casino & Lodge.
There was an attempt to expand these offerings this year. The push was to get betting more accessible beyond tribal lands. But get this, the movement wasn’t even influenced by operators wanting a bigger piece of the pie. This is common in other states as the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel spend millions on lobbying to change political sentiment.
In Washington, it’s nothing like that. The push was led by the state’s cardrooms, which wanted in on the action under the existing framework. California betting is famous for card rooms. These are casinos that only offer card games — not slots. These card clubs are also not Native-American affiliated, which probably hurt things in Washington.
Maverick Gaming, a regular American company, owns 22 cardrooms across Washington. They filed a lawsuit in January 2022 in U.S. District Court, accusing state and federal officials of giving tribes an unfair monopoly on sports betting and other gambling activities like roulette and craps. Maverick wanted the court to throw out the state’s landmark 2020 sports gambling law — which rolled out selectively starting in September 2021 — and to halt all wagering until new legislation could open it up to cardrooms and other venues.
However, Chief Judge David Estudillo of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington shut them down, ruling that the lawsuit posed a ‘substantial risk’ to the ‘sovereign interests’ of the tribes, who had already inked legal gambling compacts with the state. And with that, the push to expand betting died a quick and painful death.
If anything, the card clubs need to get creative just like they do in California. Card clubs in the Golden State are legal because state laws permit non-banked card games, where players compete against each other, not the house. These clubs earn revenue through fees or a small cut from each pot. This loophole has created tension with California tribes, but for centuries, it’s allowed them to operate freely in the state.
But there’s another state Washington should also keep close tabs on betting-wise.
Washington Could Follow Florida’s Model
Sports betting in Florida was solidified this summer when the Supreme Court denied hearing litigation against the Seminole Tribe of Florida, which has exclusive rights to offer gambling in the Sunshine State. But here’s the thing: the litigation was centered on the tribe’s ability to offer betting across the state — not just in tribal land.
Seminoles too found their own loophole to exploit to do so. They have a “hub and spoke” system. Different servers across the tribal land are connected — thus expanding the reach they can offer mobile betting. It’s a genius strategy, and one Supreme Court upheld by not hearing the lawsuit.
Every tribe across the country now has a precedent to follow thanks to Florida. They can go into their states and renegotiate their compacts to offer statewide betting via mobile apps. It hasn’t happened yet, but we anticipate it will — there’s simply too much money on the line here.
The ball is in your court Washington tribes.
See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
