Amendment 2, passed by Missouri voters in November, mandates that sports betting be operational in the state by December 2025.

But Jan Zimmerman, chair of the Missouri Gaming Commission —which is tasked with implementing the emergency rules, regulations and licensing — told KCUR’s Up To Date she expects wagers to be placed by summer.

“There’s some advantages, I guess, to being relatively late to the game,” Zimmerman said.

Missouri is taking advantage of knowledge from other agencies across the country, but Zimmerman said there are challenges because Missouri is bound by the language of the initiative petition.

The Missouri Gaming Commission first needs to create regulations, which require approval by the Governor and Secretary of State. After a 30-day public input period, the state can begin issuing gambling licenses.

Under the amendment, sports betting will only be legal through casinos, online platforms, and professional sports teams. Plus, all the employees taking bets on their behalf are required to be licensed as well.

Licensing is the lengthiest process, which includes running background checks.

“The Missouri Gaming Commission is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the process, the integrity of gambling within the state of Missouri, and so we really can’t afford to have anyone that’s inappropriate, or, you know, shouldn’t be involved in the gaming industry,” Zimmerman said.

With the Kansas City Chiefs heading into the playoffs, Missouri residents who want to put money on the team will have to head to a neighboring state like Kansas, where sports betting is already legal.