Seminole Tribe Reaches Deal To End Florida Sports Betting Battle
The Seminole Tribe of Florida and Hard Rock Bet have settled a long court battle that questioned their Florida sports betting exclusivity, they announced Monday.
West Flagler Associates operates racetracks and poker rooms in Florida and sued in late 2021, challenging the approval of a new compact that gave the Seminole Tribe exclusive rights to offer sports betting in Florida through 2051.
The settlement will see Hard Rock Bet offer betting on jai alai on its app in early 2025. In exchange, West Flagler will not legally challenge Seminole exclusivity again.
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‘Win-win’ for all involved
This is the best outcome for all of the parties, Seminole Gaming CEO Jim Allen said.
“This is truly a win-win agreement for the Seminole Tribe and West Flagler,” Allen said. “This agreement establishes a relationship of collaboration among the Seminole Tribe and West Flagler in the state of Florida.
“Rather than engaging in years of additional litigation, this agreement will allow the parties to work together to promote jai alai, which has played an important role in Florida’s gaming landscape for nearly 100 years.”
Florida sports betting timeline
Sports betting first launched through the Seminole Tribe and Hard Rock in November 2021.
The app was only up for just over a month, though, as an appeals court decided to deny the temporary stay that let the app launch in the first place. That kept Hard Rock offline in Florida for about two years, until November 2023.
The app went live again after the US Supreme Court decided it would not grant West Flagler Associates another stay while deciding if it would hear the case. The case was closed in June 2024 when the Supreme Court decided not to hear it.
Other brands in Florida sports betting?
While Hard Rock Bet owns exclusivity, it may not be the only sports betting brand available in Florida.
Allen said it is possible that other brands, including DraftKings and interview with CNBC.
“We do recognize that long-term, some type of strategic relationship with some of the brands that really have marquee value could be helpful to both of us, and we are receptive to those conversations,” Allen said.
