Nebraska Rejects Online Betting, Sports Wagering to Stay Limited to Casinos

Sports betting in Nebraska will be limited to in-person games at the state's licensed racetrack casinos. Voters rejected Initiatives 440 and 441 in the November 3 election. Measure 440 was reported to have lost 55% to 45%, while Measure 441 lost 54% to 46%.

Tax Relief Nebraska, a political action committee promising to lower property taxes, raised about $22.5 million. The committee was backed mainly by FanDuel and DraftKings. The two companies contributed $10.4 million each, while BetMGM and Fanatics gave $500,000 each. Supporters argued that taxing online sports betting revenue at 30% would create a new source of funding that could be passed on to homeowners.

The opposing campaign ran under the name Save Nebraska Sports. One of the state's best-known figures, Nebraska football legend Tom Osborne, supported the campaign. Osborne led the Cornhuskers to national championships in 1994, 1995 and 1997. He said online betting would increase gambling addiction among young people and expose student athletes to online harassment from angry bettors. "Putting a sports betting site on every phone will expose more young people to gambling addiction," Osborne said. "That is not the Nebraska way." In his view, the property tax gains do not outweigh these social and personal costs.

The outcome also matters for neighboring states. Iowa stands out as the state that will benefit most from these decisions. Because Omaha and Bellevue sit along the Missouri River, residents of those cities can cross into Iowa on a short drive and place online bets there.