Michigan Sports Betting Restricted To Licensed Casino Operators

The Lawful Sports Betting Act, MCL 432.401 to 432.419 (Public Act 149 of 2019), took immediate effect December 20, 2019, and legalized internet and mobile sports wagering statewide, but only through operators the Michigan Gaming Control Board licenses. Under MCL 432.404(1)-(2), internet sports betting may be conducted only in accordance with the act, and every wager is legally treated as gambling conducted inside the operator's licensed casino, regardless of where the bettor is physically located when the wager is placed. Eligibility is narrow: MCL 432.406(1) lets the board issue a sports betting operator license only to a person holding a casino license under the Michigan Gaming Control and Revenue Act, MCL 432.201 to 432.226, or to an Indian tribe lawfully conducting class III gaming in a state casino under an approved tribal gaming ordinance.

Each eligible casino licensee or tribe may hold no more than one sports betting operator license, valid for five years and renewable. Getting licensed costs money: MCL 432.406(6) sets a $50,000 application fee, and MCL 432.406(9) requires a $100,000 fee when the initial license issues, plus $50,000 annually after that. A bettor qualifies as an "authorized participant" under MCL 432.403(e) only if they hold a valid internet sports betting account and are at least 21 years old. Once licensed, operators pay a state tax of 8.4% on adjusted gross sports betting receipts under MCL 432.414(1), due monthly on the tenth of the following month; a host city that already charges its casino a 1.25% municipal services fee may charge that same 1.25% on that operator's sports betting receipts too.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board, created under the Michigan Gaming Control and Revenue Act, supervises the whole system and can suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew any license under MCL 432.409.

Offering internet sports betting without a Michigan Gaming Control Board license remains illegal gambling. MCL 432.409(2) lets the board investigate unlicensed operators, issue cease-and-desist orders, and seek injunctive relief in court. Licensed operators who break the act or board rules face civil fines the board develops and administers under MCL 432.409(1)(i), and the board can suspend, revoke, restrict, or refuse to renew a sports betting operator license; a denied or disciplined licensee can request a contested-case hearing within 21 days of notice.