TRIBAL GAMING
The 2021 Seminole Compact
agreement binding on both the Tribe and the State. In 2023, the 2021 Compact became effective when the United States Secretary of the Interior neither approved nor disapproved the Compact within 45 days of receiving it. 15 The 2021 Compact authorizes the Seminole Tribe to operate Covered Games “on an exclusive basis throughout the State, subject to exceptions and provisions…without State- authorized competition.” 16 “Covered Games” means those games that the Compact authorizes the Tribe to offer. 17 The Covered Games are:
The 2021 Compact provides that all sports betting has to be carried out “exclusively by and through one or more sports books conducted and operated by the Seminole Tribe or its approved management contractor.” 11 In its authorization of fantasy sports and sports betting, the compact uses a model requiring players to be physically located within the state when they place bets online, and that bets are facilitated by the Tribe, where the servers or other devices used to conduct the activity are housed on Tribal lands. 12 To illustrate the mechanism, consider a bettor in Miami who clicks 'submit' on the “Hard Rock Bet” platform, thinking their wager stays local. In reality, the bet is instantly transmitted through digital pathways to a server located in Tallahassee, which is on Tribal lands. This model effectively anchors all sports wagers to Tribal jurisdiction, even when initiated elsewhere within the state. This online bet authorization is the primary factor that brought the Compact under fire later in Court. 13 Because a Tribal compact is an agreement between a state and a sovereign tribe, it must be ratified by the state legislature to have the force of law. This is required by the Florida Constitution and by IGRA. Thus, following the Governor's ratification of the 2021 Compact, the State’s legislature adopted the same deeming language included in the agreement. The state law provides that: Wagers on sports betting, including wagers made by players physically located within the state using a mobile or other electronic device, shall be deemed to be exclusively conducted by the Tribe where the servers or other devices used to conduct such wagering activity on the Tribe’s Indian lands are located. 14
1. Specifically defined slot machines 2. banking or banked card games, 3. raffles and drawings 4. craps, including dice games 5. roulette 6. fantasy sports contests, and 7. sports betting. 18
The Compact was specifically drafted to ensure that it that complies with IGRA’s requirements and avoids violating the state constitution's requirement that expansion of casino gaming in the state be authorized by its citizens. Amendment 3 In 2018, Florida voters approved Amendment 3 to their constitution with a section titled “Voter Control of Gambling in Florida.” 19 With this Amendment to the Constitution, the exclusive method for expanding “casino gaming” within the state is a citizen’s initiative vote. 20 Provided in relevant part the amended Article X, Section 30 reads: This amendment ensures that Florida voters shall have the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling in the State of Florida. This amendment requires a vote by citizens’ initiative pursuant to Article XI, section
The state legislatures' ratification of the Compact made the
11 2021 Compact 12 Fla. Stat. Ann. § 285.710 (b)(6) and (7). 13 W. Flagler Assocs., Ltd. v. Haaland, 71 F.4th 1059 (D.C. Cir. 2023), cert. denied, (2024). 14 Fla. Const. Art. X, § 30. 15 W. Flagler Assocs., Ltd. v. Haaland, 71 F.4th 1059 (D.C. Cir. 2023), cert. denied, (2024). 16 Fla. Stat. Ann. § 285.710 (West).
17 Id 18 Id 19 Fla. Const. Art. X, § 30. 20 Id
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IMGL MAGAZINE | JUNE 2026
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