No Ruling in Florida Sports Betting Yet But Mickey Wants in if it Happens

A federal judge was expected to rule on the legality of the Florida gambling compact that looks to bring sports betting to the Sunshine State.  The Seminoles have jumped the gun a bit by launching a mobile website.

U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich is still reviewing the case.

West Flagler Associates et al v. Haaland et al, contends that mobile bets constitute gambling expansion while the Seminoles contend such wagers are processed on servers located on tribal lands.  United States of America v. Jay Cohen found otherwise, however, ruling that bets taken over the Internet by World Sports Exchange based out of Antigua were actually being placed on US soil.  

And now even Disney CEO Bob Chapek sounds more open than ever to its subsidiary ESPN embracing sports betting, despite Disney's family-friendly image.

During Wednesday’s earnings call, Chapek said that Disney has found both a broader acceptance of sports betting among the general public and that people see ESPN and Disney as separate brands.

“We have done substantial research in terms of the impact not only to the ESPN brand, but the Disney brand, in terms of consumers’ changing perceptions of the acceptability of gambling,” said Chapek. “And what we’re finding is that there’s a very significant isolation.”

One of the few entities with as much clout - if not more - than the Seminoles in Florida is Disney.  Ironically, they have been in discussions with DraftKings to form a partnership.  The Seminoles, meanwhile, continue to flood the local airwaves warning residents not to sign gambling petitions that would offer DraftKings and FanDuel an in to the Florida market.

- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com