DraftKings and FanDuel Deepen Investment in Nebraska’s Online Sports Betting Ballot Push
DraftKings and FanDuel have each contributed an additional $3.5 million to the campaign to legalize online sports betting in Nebraska, bringing total fundraising for the effort to approximately $14.65 million. The contributions arrive weeks before Nebraska voters weigh two statewide measures on the November 3 ballot that would authorize and regulate mobile sports wagering in the state.
Two separate initiatives will appear before voters. The first, a constitutional amendment known as Initiative Measure 440, would amend the Nebraska Constitution to permit laws allowing sports wagers placed through internet-based platforms. The second, an initiated state statute, would establish the regulatory and tax framework for the market. Both measures qualified for the ballot in August after the sponsoring committee, Tax Relief Nebraska, submitted signatures gathered through a petition drive that began earlier in the year.
Under the proposed framework, online sports betting operators would partner with Nebraska’s licensed casinos. WarHorse Casino, operated by Ho-Chunk, Inc., the economic development corporation of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, has reportedly already entered agreements with several national operators, including DraftKings, FanDuel, and MGM.
Nebraska currently permits sports betting only at a limited number of retail sportsbooks located at licensed racetrack casinos, which went live in 2023 following a 2021 legislative authorization. Online wagering remains prohibited, and several legislative attempts to expand the market in recent years did not advance.
Proponents argue the measures would capture wagering activity that is already occurring through unregulated offshore platforms. Research commissioned by supporters of the initiative estimated that legalizing online sports betting could generate just under $87 million in revenue for the state. Under the proposed structure, 70 percent of new tax revenue would be automatically directed toward property tax relief, an allocation that has become a central element of the campaign’s messaging.
The latest contributions from DraftKings and FanDuel underscore the stakes for national operators, who have increasingly relied on direct ballot measures to enter states where legislative pathways have stalled. The two companies had previously contributed to the Nebraska effort earlier in the campaign cycle.
