The Minnesota Senate committee has once again buried hopes of sports betting being legalized in the state any time soon.
The SB 757 bill proposing to offer legal sports betting ended in a 6-6 tied vote on February 13, 2025. The revised bill was first filed on February 3 as a last-ditch effort to see gambling permitted sometime this year.
The proposal was spearheaded by Senator Matt Klein, a long-time advocate for sports betting and one of the main bill sponsors.
Klein, alongside industry experts and gambling groups, was faced with an onslaught of questions regarding the benefits of college sports betting and its harms.
During debates, Klein said: “The state of Minnesota telling everyone you can’t bet on your device more than $200 a day? It takes away self-determination, and I could not support that.”
It is the fifth time lawmakers within Minnesota have attempted to legalize sports betting to no success. Consequently, millions of sports fans will continue to travel to other states for legal gambling.
In a comment shared with igamingbusiness, Brendan Bussmann, managing partner at B Global, said: “Today’s hearing was disappointing considering there was an agreement in place at the end of last year’s session and even further agreement the year before that.
“It’s unfortunate that Minnesotans are leaving for other states for sports betting while silly conversations happen in committee that are based on nothing but misinterpreted hearsay.”
The tabled second bill
A second bill, HB 978, has been moved to be tabled at the request of bill sponsor Senator John Marty, who held an anti-gambling hearing in early January 2025.
Marty has long opposed legalizing sports betting in Minnesota and suggested to members of the Senate committee that his bill offered more safeguards than Klein’s.
This bill proposes to introduce a gambling ad ban to events where more than 30% of the audience is under 21 years of age, as opposed to Klein’s suggestion of 10%.
It also advised banning gambling-related ads from being displayed on public buildings or venues, such as Minnesota’s numerous sports stadiums.
The state isn’t likely to see sports betting legalized this year, and Minnesotans will have to travel to other states to test their luck.
In other news, learn how illegal gambling netted $9.5 billion in New York, New Jersey, and Minnesota last year.
