A new lawsuit filed in Leon County circuit court this week challenges the legality of Florida’s online sports betting framework, reigniting the debate over whether such gambling requires voter approval under the state constitution.
The suit, brought by Protect the Constitution LLC, alleges that the 2021 compact between Governor Ron DeSantis and the Seminole Tribe of Florida violates a 2018 constitutional amendment requiring a public referendum for the expansion of casino gambling.
The agreement, ratified by the Florida Legislature, authorized the Seminole Tribe to offer mobile sports betting across the state by routing bets through servers located on tribal land. That system went live in late 2023.
“Today, online sports betting occurs throughout the state of Florida,” the lawsuit states. “But no citizens’ initiative has ever been held to provide authorization. And the people of Florida have never been allowed to exercise their constitutional right to decide whether sports betting should be authorized throughout the state.”
Filed by Jacksonville attorney W. Bradley Russell, the complaint names the state, the Florida Gaming Control Commission, and its members as defendants. The suit seeks a declaratory judgment and injunction against the enforcement of the compact’s online betting provisions.
Protect the Constitution LLC, registered in Delaware, argues that its unnamed members, businesses operating in Florida, have suffered financial harm due to what they allege is unauthorized expansion of gambling.
The core legal issue rests on Amendment 3, passed by voters in 2018, which stipulates that any new casino gambling outside of tribal lands must be approved through a constitutional amendment. While the Seminole compact claims compliance by operating servers on tribal property, the plaintiffs argue that enabling bets to be placed from anywhere in Florida violates the spirit and letter of the amendment.
The 2021 compact not only granted the Seminole Tribe exclusive rights to offer online sports betting but also expanded its in-person offerings to include games like craps and roulette. In return, the tribe agreed to pay the state a minimum of $2.5 billion over the first five years of the deal.
According to a February 2025 report from the state Revenue Estimating Conference, the state is projected to receive $809.1 million in Indian gaming revenue in the current fiscal year. The report noted that “all signs point to legal sports betting activity running much stronger than contemplated in the prior forecast.”
This lawsuit follows several previous legal efforts to dismantle the compact. In 2021, pari-mutuel operators West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corporation challenged the deal in both state and federal courts. While a federal judge initially sided with the plaintiffs, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit overturned that ruling in 2023. The U.S. Supreme Court later declined to hear the case, effectively allowing the compact to stand.
In a separate state-level case, the Florida Supreme Court dismissed the challenge in March 2024, not on its merits but because the petitioners had used an improper legal mechanism. “Quo warranto is not and has never been the proper vehicle to obtain a declaration as to the substantive constitutionality of an enacted law,” the court wrote, adding that the issues could be pursued through a standard legal challenge, precisely the path taken in the latest filing.
Original article: https://www.yogonet.com/international/news/2025/04/25/102756-new-legal-challenge-filed-against-floridas-sports-betting-compact-with-seminole-tribe
