Arizona Tribes Looking at Online Casino Gambling

It's been 2+ years since Arizona passed its online sports betting legislation. With control of the sports betting community being divided between professional sports franchises and the state's Indian Tribal community, sports betting has been a smashing success for all concerned parties. Now, it appears that online gambling attention in the state is turning to iGaming access and the Tribes want in with a better deal.

At last month's Arizona Indian Gaming Association Expo, a panel titled “Sports Betting to iGaming: Navigating the Future of Indian Gaming” was held. The discussion focused on the pros and cons of bringing iGaming access to the Grand Canyon state. Participants in the panel included Paula Hart, director of the Indian Affairs Office, as well as tribal legal representatives Scott Crowell and Stephen Hart.

After the panel discussion ended, Hart told reporters from PlayUSA.com that caution is warranted because talks among the Tribal community are still in their infancy. She stated:

"I think we can safely say that there’s nothing imminent. I think we can also safely say that there is interest, particularly because of the West Flagler case, and tribes are trying to sort out what that means and what their next steps can be."

About the Panel Discussion

Much of the panel discussion was focused on the legalities involved in bringing iGaming to the state and how Tribes might want to proceed. It's noteworthy that much of this initial discussion centered on the recent federal case between Florida's Seminole Tribe and West Flagler, a commercial gambling company doing business in part of the state.

That case was resolved in favor of the Seminoles who argued that maintaining computer servers to house iGaming software platforms satisfied Department of Interior regulations that only permit Tribes to offer gambling access from Indian-owned land. That plays well for the Arizona Tribal community that has made clear they would only be interested in getting involved with iGaming access if they could have material control of it. Tribal success in Michigan was also discussed.

How Arizona's Tribes Plan to Move Forward

While there is initial interest in online casino gambling, the consensus among the Tribal community is they would want a better deal from the state before moving forward. That seems to be particularly important among the Tribes that have land holding around the major urban areas.

For certain, the Seminole decision in Florida was a game-changer. It certainly got the attention of Tribal leadership in Arizona. While all current discussions are being described as preliminary, there is a sense that interest is growing. At the same time, interested parties have made clear they will be moving forward with caution. What they don't want to do is make the same mistakes they made when negotiating access to retail and online sports betting.

It's worth noting that no one outside the Tribal community has mentioned any material interest in getting involved with the iGaming industry. That will likely come to be when interest piques among the state's 22 Indian tribes