New Mexico's Santa Ana Star Casino to Launch Sportsbook Tomorrow

New Mexico's Santa Ana Star Casino will launch its official sportsbook tomorrow - the funny thing is, New Mexico hasn't actually legalized sports betting. Unlike New Jersey, Delaware, Mississippi, West Virginia, and Rhode Island, New Mexico has not passed any legislation regarding sports betting.

So how can the Santa Ana Star get away with it? Because it's not operated by the state; it's operated by the Tamaya Nation at the Pueblo of Santa Ana and falls under the jurisdiction of tribal gaming laws. So its sportsbook will kick off this Tuesday without any actual regulation from the New Mexico government.

David Carl, press secretary for the Office of the Attorney General, did note that while Santa Ana Star operates under tribal laws, New Mexican lawmakers will "closely monitor New Mexico’s tribal gaming compacts and work with the legislature for proper statutory and regulatory oversight to require responsible gaming and enhanced integrity to create an even playing field for all.”

Since the state of New Mexico is not actually regulating the sportsbook, it will receive no tax revenue from it.

About the Santa Ana Star Sportsbook

The sportsbook at Santa Ana Star Casino will be powered by the Las Vegas-based tech firm, USBookmaking, and at this point will only offer on-site, land-based betting, not mobile.

California Tribes Prepping for Legal Sports Betting

New Mexico tribes aren’t the only ones who are ready to capitalize on the newly-legal sports betting industry. In California, the joint venture of MGM-GVC has announced a partnership with United Auburn Indian Community (UAIC) for a future sports betting venture.

Chairman of UAIC Gene Whitehouse commented, “It is not yet clear if California will authorize sports betting or interactive games generally, but with the overturn of PASPA possibly opening the doors for sports betting, our tribe wants to be well-situated and this agreement with the national leader in the field does just that.”