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On the final day of the Wisconsin Senate’s regular session of 2026, lawmakers approved a bill that would bring legal online sports betting to the state. The measure, Assembly Bill 601, won by a vote of 21–12, and now moves to Governor Tony Evers’ desk for its final lap before becoming law.
The bill lays out a tribal-focused online sports betting framework modeled after Florida’s “hub‑and‑spoke” system. Under this approach, wagers must be routed through servers located on tribal lands, effectively granting Wisconsin’s tribes exclusive control of the market.
If signed, Wisconsin would become the 40th state to legalize online sports betting, with supporters arguing that it would help protect consumers in the state while bringing in revenue.
State Sen. Kristin Dassler-Alfheim (D-Appleton), who voted in favor, stated: “I would rather us put as many parameters around it as we can to take care of our consumers and keep the revenue in with the family of our local tribes, who are also sharing back with the state.”
Evers likely to sign bill
Governor Evers now faces the decision on Assembly Bill 601, which legalizes online sports betting only when wagers are processed through servers located on tribal land.
That condition was central to winning Democratic votes in the Senate. “My vote today is to get this going, that all these tribes can start having these conversations,” said Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein. “To figure out where all of them want to go.”
Evers had earlier tied his support to tribal consensus, telling a WisPolitics luncheon in February: “We have to engage the tribes on that, and I don’t think there’s been much. It’s their issue. We have to have them at the table, and to my knowledge, they are not at the table.” His spokeswoman later referred back to those comments when asked about his position.
If he signs the bill, some conservatives have already signaled plans to challenge it in court, arguing that online wagering cannot be allowed without amending the state constitution. Others object to the tribal exclusivity, insisting the market should be open.
DraftKings and FanDuel also opposed the measure, while the Sports Betting Alliance warned that federal rules requiring at least 60% of revenue to flow to tribes make partnerships unworkable.
Damon Stewart of the SBA testified, stating, “It is simply not economically feasible for a commercial operator to hand over 60% or more of its revenue to an in-state gaming entity, just for the right to operate in the state.”
Despite these objections, Evers is widely expected to approve the bill.
The state will then have to figure out how to negotiate new gaming compacts with its 11 tribes and get them approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs before online sports betting can finally be introduced.
