As sports betting, craps and roulette commence, Seminole Tribe to begin paying millions to the state

The Seminole Tribe will begin paying the state of Florida hundreds of millions of dollars as part of its 2021 gambling deal with Gov. Ron DeSantis that legalizes sports betting, officials confirmed Friday, a day after the tribe celebrated the launch of sports betting, craps and roulette across South Florida.

Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming and chairman of Hard Rock International, told The News Service of Florida on Friday that the tribe expects to pay the state at least $650 million over the next year as part of their 2021 gaming compact, which gave the tribe a monopoly on sports betting.

“The compact is now back in full force, and the tribe is abiding with the full terms of the compact,” Allen said. “It’s certainly our intention to comply with the compact in our relationship with the state. Obviously, we’re just launching all this stuff today.”

His comments come amid a week of festivities and despite two ongoing lawsuits, one before the state Supreme Court and one before the U.S Supreme Court, which seek to halt sports betting. Also on Friday, the tribe filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting DeSantis in the state lawsuit arguing that its interpretation of existing law “is rational and in keeping with existing legal principles.”