One more go

Much like commercial operators across the US, local tribes have had legal California sports betting in their crosshairs for a long time. California has the largest population in the country at more than 39 million, meaning its betting potential is also greater than any other state.

a fresh initiative to go on the ballot in 2026 or 2028

Despite multiple failed attempts at getting legal betting over the line, the tribes are far from giving up. The California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) met recently and decided it would put together a fresh initiative to go on the ballot in 2026 or 2028.

James Siva, Chairman of CNIGA, said he is hopeful that the initiative, which will be put together by a select work group of tribal representatives, will be “capable of receiving mass tribal support.” The work group will initially include just tribal leaders, but there will be “opportunities for attorneys and consultants to come in” for fine tuning.

More cooperation

Siva made it clear that he hopes for a unified approach this time around, to avoid a repeat of the division seen during the 2022 election campaign (the last time the tribes tried and failed to get betting passed). The tribes were split on three initiatives during that cycle, including two tribal initiatives and one commercial proposal.

To avoid this, Siva said he wants the tribal leaders to put themselves forward for the workgroup. While this might mean the workgroup will begin with many participants, he believes it will ensure that all voices are heard on the issue. Then, they will cut down the number of members over time once there is a basis for the initiative.

commercial operators, who ran their own initiative in 2022, seem to have admitted defeat

Notably, commercial operators, who ran their own initiative in 2022, seem to have admitted defeat. The group, led by FanDuel, said it will take a backseat and allow the tribes to develop the state’s betting market, although operators are still hopeful they can have a say in the discussion.

Not an easy task

If getting California sports betting over the line was easy, it certainly would have happened by now. The state has proven a particularly difficult nut to crack for a number of reasons, one of the main issues being disagreement over what a legal market should look like.

This issue came to a head in November 2022 when Caifornia’s tribes went up against a group of commercial operators. Two initiatives made it to the November ballot. One measure would have kept the power in-state by allowing tribal casinos to operate sportsbooks, while the other would have opened the door to FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, and others.

Ultimately, both of those initiatives failed to drum up the necessary support on the ballot. Around 82% of voters said No to the commercial option, while only 66% voted No to the tribal one, leaving at least some hope for a tribal market in the future.