Wisconsin Online Sports Betting Delayed Until Spring Due to Lawsuit; Eight Tribes Join Defense
Online sports betting in Wisconsin faces further delays, with a lawsuit challenging its legality not expected to be settled until spring 2027. The Wisconsin Legislature and Governor Tony Evers approved a law in April to open the door for online sports betting, but it requires state and federal sign-off, including renegotiated compacts with the state's 11 tribes. In August, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Brown County Taxpayers Association and Citizens Defending Liberty, arguing the law violates the Wisconsin Constitution. On November 9, Waukesha County Judge Arthur Melvin allowed eight tribes—Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Forest County Potawatomi Community, Ho-Chunk Nation, Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, Oneida Nation, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, Sokaogon Chippewa Community, and Stockbridge-Munsee Community—to join the case as intervenors to defend the law.