Nebraska Racing and Gaming Executive Director Tom Sage said sports betting technically became legal on Wednesday after the Secretary of State’s Office published recently approved rules, but there is not yet infrastructure in place at the state’s licensed casinos to take any bets.

“It’s still going to be several weeks,” Sage said.

Under Nebraska law, sports betting must take place in person in licensed casinos at the state’s horse racing tracks. Only two of those are currently operating: WarHorse Casino in Lincoln and Elite Casino Resorts in Grand Island.

Sage said those operations still have some hoops to jump through to accept sports wagers. For example, they must apply for and be granted a vendor license for whoever is going to run their sports betting operations, and the commission also will have to inspect and approve whatever equipment they use.

“They’re not close, from my understanding” to be able to take bets yet, he said.

Lynne McNally, CEO of the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, confirmed that it “should be a few weeks” before sports betting is available at the Lincoln casino.

McNally said Lance Morgan, president and CEO of Ho-Chunk Inc., a partner with the Horsemen’s group on the Lincoln casino and one under construction in Omaha, is currently interviewing potential sports betting providers and should make a decision soon.

Once that happens, the provider will have to seek a license from the commission and be vetted. But once the commission signs off, things should move pretty quickly, McNally said.

Sports betting could be even farther off at the Grand Island Casino.

Vincent Fiala, general manager of the Grand Island Casino Resort, said it will likely be months before sports betting is available there.

“Honestly, at best it’s probably going to be next fall,” Fiala said.

He said Elite Casino Resorts, the company operating the casino at Fonner Park and in other states, has its own sportsbook but also uses third-party operators, and he’s not sure yet what the plan is in Grand Island.

The G.I. casino also has to figure out how to fit sports betting equipment such as kiosks into its existing temporary casino space inside the concourse at Fonner Park.

Still, Fiala called the prospect of sports betting in Nebraska “exciting.”

The process to approve sports betting took about three months, about two months less than it took to complete the final steps to approve casino licenses.

That was due in large part to new Gov. Jim Pillen signing off quickly on sports gaming rules.

The Racing and Gaming Commission approved its proposed sports betting regulations on Oct. 21, and the Attorney General’s Office signed off on them Jan. 10. Pillen’s approval came Jan. 27.

By contrast, former Gov. Pete Ricketts took nearly two months to sign off on casino rules after the Attorney General’s Office reviewed them.

“I’m happy that they went through as fast as they did,” Sage said.

McNally said she was “pleasantly surprised” that the process moved a little faster than expected.

She said she’s been impressed with Pillen and feels he’s been very responsive so far.

One of the governor’s top issues is property tax relief, and the addition of sports betting should provide even more revenue for those efforts.

The casino gambling initiatives approved by voters in 2020 dictate that 70% of tax revenues from gambling go to a state property tax relief fund.

In just over three months of operation last year, WarHorse Lincoln generated nearly $1.9 million for the property tax relief fund, while the Grand Island casino sent $68,000 to state coffers in just five days of operation.

Overall, the two casinos offering only slot machines in temporary facilities generated more than $2.8 million in tax revenue in 2022.

Construction is underway on the casino resort in Lincoln, and work in Grand Island will begin later this year. When complete, both will include sportsbooks.

On Tuesday, Massachusetts became the 33rd state to launch sports betting. In states bordering Nebraska, only Missouri has not legalized sports wagers.