The Stillaguamish and Tulalip tribes were officially allowed to proceed with offering sports betting services in their casinos after they managed to clear a final obstacle on their way.
On September 1st, the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) announced that it gave its approval to the amendments that had been brought to each tribe’s gambling deal with the state. The agreements, which are also known as compacts, provide rules about how sports betting can be conducted in the Tulalip and Stillaguamish tribe’s casinos, as well as in entertainment venues, hotels and conference centers.
The official federal approval was published yesterday in the Federal Register. Still, the two Native American tribes will have to wait a few weeks before they were able to accept any wagers.
The Chair of the Tulalip Tribes, Teri Gobin, revealed that they hope to be able to open sports betting areas in the Tulalip Resort Casino and the Quil Ceda Casino in the period between November 1st and January 1st but they want to make sure they would choose the right vendors.
For the time being, a total of 16 tribes in Washington are seeking to receive federal approval to be able to offer sports betting services. On September 1st, nine of them, including the Stillaguamish and the Tulalip tribes, had received the much-awaited nod for their amended compacts. With the gambling agreements listed in the register, they will be now able to offer sports betting. Now, each of the nine tribes will be able to focus on establishing sportsbooks and lounges and hiring a commercial gambling partner to conduct the sports betting activities.
So Far Washington Allowed Nine Federally Recognized Tribes to Offer Sports Bets
Currently, 15 companies, including gambling industry giants such as BetMGM, FanDuel, DraftKings, Scientific Games and Caesar’s Sportsbook, are in the process of getting an operating license from the state gambling regulatory body in order to be able to operate in Washington. One operator, International Game Technology (IGT) has already signed a partnership agreement with the Snoqualmie Tribe to manage sports betting services at the tribe’s casino in King County.
According to Jennifer LaMont from the Gambling Commission’s licensing division, the state of Washington gave the green light to the first sports betting vendor license.
Washington passed its sports betting law in 2020 to officially allow betting on professional, collegiate, Olympic and international sports. Betting on e-sports is also allowed. Betting on minor sports leagues and high-school or young athletics is not permitted under the existing sports betting legislation.
In April, the Tulalip Tribes became the first Native American tribes to reach a deal, under which they were allowed to start the provision of sports betting services, with the state Gambling Commission. In June, deals with most of the tribes were unanimously approved by the state gambling panel.
The tribes that still await action on the gambling regulator’s part are the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Kalispel, Skokomish, Swinomish, Shoalwater Bay, Jamestown S’Klallam and Muckleshoot.
