People sit at the slot machines on the casino floor at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Octavio Jones/Getty Images)
It's been a long and slow ride to get here, but we finally have a date set for sports betting in Florida. The Seminole Tribe has announced that starting December 7th retail sports betting will be open at six Florida casinos. Two of their locations in Hollywood as well as their Tampa, Coconut Creek, Immokalee, and Brighton. Jim Allen, the CEO and Chairman of Hard Rock International released the following statement on the news; "This is a historic milestone that immediately puts Florida in the same league with the world's great gaming destinations." So now that a date is set for sports betting in Florida, what's the next step? For in person betting there is nothing to do except build your bank roll. But what about the app and mobile sports betting?
The answer to that question is still murky. I assume that the Seminole Tribe would launch the Hard Rock Bet app on the same day as the in person books, December 7th. However there are reports that the app could be online for Florida residents before then. And Slater is a South Florida radio and television personality. He is reporting that the app will be opened to those in Florida within the next 2-3 weeks. There have also been reports that betting kiosks will be put in at Hard Rock Stadium. The first home game for the Miami Dolphins after sports gambling becomes legal is on December 11th against the Titans. For those of you who are not interested in sports gambling, there will be more table games offered at casinos around the state. Roulette and Craps will also be offered starting on December 7th.
