Taking risks, making money: How sports betting in Florida changed this year

Calling all sports fans!

Do you like to gamble or place bets on your favorite sports teams?

Well, a lot has changed in just the last year in regard to how you can bet and the rules surrounding it.

34-year-old Alex Toniyevich spends his days buying and selling tickets for sports and concerts.

“I went to a concert, I realized I could sell it for more and then I just stuck with it,” said Toniyevich, who enjoys taking risks and making money. His Instagram page called @WeGamblin is dedicated to his love of casinos.

But he’s also passionate about sports and ever since he could, he’s been an avid Florida sports better.

“I would like to think I am responsible when I bet on games and sports. I don’t take it over the edge, I just need that little gamble so I have that sense of adrenaline,” he said from his home in Miami.

“I don’t like baseball so if I am forced to watch a game, I might bet on it so that I have a rooting interest and it makes the game more interesting for me.”

But the way Alex bets has changed. More than a decade ago there was only one way to place a wager back when he lived in New York.

“You would hear about a friend through a friend who is a bookie and he would have a website. You would do it through his website or through a friend and just tell them you want action on this game, I want action on whatever, they would take the bet. And whether you won or loss they would pay you weekly.”

Now, things look much different in Florida.

Things have changed

You might have seen promotions of the Seminole Tribe’s App, Hard Rock Bet.

It’s the only sports betting app available in the state that allows you to place a wager on the outcome of any professional or collegiate sporting event, or on individual players performances.

If you live in Florida and and you want to sports bet, the only options are the Hard Rock Bet app or going in person to the six Seminole Hard Rock Casinos.

“Yes that’s true and there might be a few other facilities, race track venues, that have entered into partnership with the Seminole Tribe, but in reality, you are betting through the Seminole Tribes website, not through the racetracks website,” said Daniel Wallach of Wallach Legal, a law firm specialized in sports betting.

But why is the Native American Tribe the only legal avenue?

Let’s take a quick history lesson.

Back in 2018, the US Supreme Court overturned a federal ban on state approved sports betting. In 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis decided to enter in a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe, granting them complete exclusivity over sports betting in the state.

But some people didn’t like that.

West Flagler Associates, that own two other gaming properties, filed a lawsuit which overturned the gaming compact and shut down sports betting until 2023.

That’s when the courts reversed the decision.

And now the Seminole Tribe is back on with the gaming compact which will remain in effect until 2051.

“And until that date, the Seminole Tribe has a hammerlock and complete control over state wide sports betting,” said Wallach, explaining that this makes the market less competitive, impacting odds, prices and promotions.

While he believes the way things are now will remain in effect for some time, he still thinks a more varied market can happen in multiple ways.

One is West Flagler going back to court.

“Their argument would be that by granting a Native American tribe a monopoly to the exclusion of non-gaming stakeholders, you have violated the equal protection rights of all these other non-tribal stakeholders who are being excluded simply because they are not Native American.”

Another option could be Florida betters taking advantage of the ballot initiative process.

But sports betters like Alex don’t think much needs to change.

“It’s a pretty streamlined process now, at this point maybe they are going to offer in stadium betting like at Dolphins stadium for instance and you can bet there live at the windows or something.”

Compulsive gambling

Alex says the biggest difference he’s noticed with the sports betting landscape is that even the average person can weigh in: “Everybody is betting on everything.”

“It’s a lot more available to people, which is a good thing and a bad thing, I guess, because some people can’t control themselves. They are betting money they probably shouldn’t be betting.”

The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling says that around 2.1% Floridians have a gambling addiction. 90% of their callers are male and 54% of them are under the age of 30.

Jennifer Kruse, the Executive Director of Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling said that “their lifetime losses are reported much higher than their incomes, around $147,000 and their incomes were around $105,000.”

“So they are males that are making more money but are also losing more money and I think that can be attributed to level of skill that some people think is involved in sports betting. They think they know a player, or a team and they think they can predict the outcome better than just a traditional form of gambling like playing a slot machine. So, there’s the unrealistic beliefs and expectations about their wins and odds of winning.”

She says the consequences for those who can’t stop are significant.

“It can affect your finances, money is the drug that keeps fueling the addiction, you have to have money to stay in action. So, a lot of times people will deplete their finances,” explains Kruse.

That's why there is a help line to assist anyone who is triggered to keep betting.

The good news, according to Jennifer, is that the majority of the population place bets as a recreational activity.

That’s Alex, who depending on the sport bets around $500 to $1,000.

He’s made some money on some games, lost money in others, but he says for the average better like him, it’s just about having some fun.

“People are doing it just for enjoyment. You are at a party, and everyone is betting on one side, so you want to have rooting interest with your friends. Plus, money won is better than money earned.”

To operate the Hard Rock Bet app, you must login and put in a deposit of money into your account.

You will then see all of the sporting events you can bet on. If there’s a game that piques your interest you click on it, type in how much you want to bet and send it in.

You can only bet in the state of Florida as the app geo-tags your location.

If you or a loved one believe you are experiencing a gambling addiction, you can call the hotline at 888-ADMIT IT.