Is sports betting legal in Wisconsin?
Yes, in person at tribal casinos, or on a tribe's app while you're on its reservation. Oneida Casino in Green Bay took the state's first legal sports bet on November 30, 2021, under a tribal compact amendment approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior. 2025 Wisconsin Act 247, signed April 9, 2026, lets tribes take mobile bets from anywhere in the state through servers on tribal land, but no statewide app had launched as of September 27, 2026, and a lawsuit filed in August 2026 asks a state court to strike the law down.
Where you can bet
We confirmed sportsbooks run by four tribes. The Oneida Nation takes bets at kiosks at its Airport Drive, West Mason, Packerland and Travel Center locations in Green Bay, and its app works anywhere inside the Oneida Nation's boundaries. The Forest County Potawatomi opened 20 betting kiosks at Potawatomi Casino Hotel in Milwaukee on March 31, 2023, and now run Potawatomi Sportsbook there. The St. Croix Chippewa have sportsbooks at their Turtle Lake, Danbury and Hertel casinos. Lac du Flambeau's Lake of the Torches has six DraftKings kiosks and one betting window.
Wisconsin college teams are off the board. Oneida lists amateur and collegiate events "excluding Wisconsin teams," and Potawatomi's house rules say it won't accept wagers on any event or market involving a Wisconsin college. Potawatomi sets a minimum age of 21. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau says most compacts set 21 as the gaming age, but the Lac Courte Oreilles and Sokaogon compacts allow 18. There's no state sports betting tax; the tribes make payments to the state under their compacts instead.
How Wisconsin legalized sports betting
The constitutional ban, 1965 to 1999
Before 1965, Article IV, Section 24 of the Wisconsin Constitution said "the legislature shall never authorize any lottery," and it was read to bar all gambling. Voters then approved exceptions one at a time: promotional contests in 1965, charitable bingo in 1973 and raffles in 1977. On April 7, 1987, they approved a state lottery by 739,181 votes to 391,942, and a separate 1987 amendment allowed privately run pari-mutuel on-track betting. The lottery started selling tickets on September 14, 1988.
An April 1993 amendment narrowed the section, which now opens: "Except as provided in this section, the legislature may not authorize gambling in any form." It also bars the state lottery from running any game in which winners are picked by the result of a race or sporting event. The section was amended once more in April 1999, over how lottery and gaming money is distributed for property tax relief.
Tribal compacts, 1988 to 2021
Congress passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) in 1988. It lets a tribe offer Class III gaming, the category that includes sports betting, under a compact with its state. Wisconsin's governor negotiates those compacts under s. 14.035 of the statutes, and all 11 federally recognized tribes in the state signed compacts in 1991 and 1992, before the 1993 amendment. In 2006 the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that the amendment doesn't reach those pre-1993 compacts.
After Murphy v. NCAA struck down the federal sports betting ban on May 14, 2018, tribes began adding "event wagering" to their compacts. The Oneida Nation and the state sent Interior their Third Amendment on July 2, 2021. Interior approved it on August 16, and it took effect when notice appeared in the Federal Register on August 20. Slow delivery of the betting kiosks, first due in September, pushed the launch to November 30, 2021.
The other tribes, 2022 to 2025
Eight more tribes followed, each through a Federal Register notice: the Forest County Potawatomi (April 12, 2022), St. Croix Chippewa (April 25, 2022), Lac Courte Oreilles (September 20, 2022), Menominee (October 5, 2022), Sokaogon Chippewa (November 17, 2022), Lac du Flambeau (April 9, 2024), Stockbridge-Munsee (October 16, 2024) and Ho-Chunk (January 8, 2025). The Stockbridge-Munsee and Ho-Chunk amendments took effect by operation of law, after Interior let the 45-day review period run out. Interior's March 31, 2022 letter approving the Potawatomi amendment describes a provision for statewide "hub and spoke" event wagering once state law allowed it. The other two tribes, Bad River and Red Cliff, have no published event-wagering amendment that we could find.
2025 Wisconsin Act 247
Rep. Tyler August introduced Assembly Bill 601 on October 29, 2025. Facing opposition from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL), it was pulled from the Assembly calendar hours before a November 19, 2025 vote. The Sports Betting Alliance, representing DraftKings and FanDuel, testified that it would force outside operators to pay tribes at least 60% of revenue. The Assembly passed it on February 19, 2026. On March 17 the Senate concurred 21 to 12, with nine Republicans voting no. All 11 tribes asked Gov. Tony Evers to sign it, and his April 9 signing statement rejected any plan leaving some tribes "only crumbs."
The act adds s. 945.01(1)(h), which takes a sports wager made from a phone in Wisconsin out of the definition of a "bet" when the server is on a tribe's land and the wager is made under a compact "originally entered into prior to April 1, 1993." The wager is deemed to happen where the server sits. Each tribe still needs a compact amendment approved by Interior. We found no such amendment for statewide mobile betting in the Federal Register as of September 27, 2026.
Sports betting court cases in Wisconsin
Compact cases, 2004 to 2015
In Panzer v. Doyle, 2004 WI 52, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that Gov. Jim Doyle couldn't agree in the 2003 Potawatomi amendments to new games, an unlimited compact term or a waiver of the state's sovereign immunity. Two years later, in Dairyland Greyhound Park v. Doyle, 2006 WI 107, a suit the Dairyland racetrack filed in 2001, the court held that the 1993 amendment doesn't reach the pre-1993 compacts, even amendments that expand their games, and withdrew the contrary language in Panzer. In 2015 the Seventh Circuit held that the Ho-Chunk Nation's non-banked electronic poker in Madison was Class II gaming, which Wisconsin couldn't block.
Ho-Chunk Nation v. Kalshi (2025 to present)
The Ho-Chunk Nation sued Kalshi and Robinhood in the Western District of Wisconsin on August 20, 2025 (No. 3:25-cv-00698), claiming that sports event contracts reachable on its land are Class III gaming barred by IGRA, its compact and its gaming ordinance. On May 11, 2026, Judge William M. Conley let the IGRA claims proceed and held the tribe likely to succeed on them, but denied a preliminary injunction for lack of irreparable harm. He dismissed the Lanham Act and racketeering claims and both Robinhood defendants. On September 11 he certified that order for interlocutory appeal and stayed the case. Kalshi petitioned the Seventh Circuit for permission to appeal on September 21 (No. 26-8020). The court hadn't acted on it as of September 27.
Wisconsin's suits against the platforms (2026)
Attorney General Josh Kaul filed three civil suits in Dane County Circuit Court on April 23, 2026, seeking declarations that the defendants violate the commercial gambling statute, s. 945.03, and are a public nuisance. The defendants removed all three to the Western District of Wisconsin the next day: State of Wisconsin v. QCX, LLC (Polymarket, No. 3:26-cv-00375), State of Wisconsin v. Kalshi, Inc. (with Robinhood Derivatives and Coinbase Financial Markets, No. 3:26-cv-00378) and State of Wisconsin v. Foris DAX Markets (Crypto.com, No. 3:26-cv-00381). Blockratize (Polymarket) and QC Clearing were dismissed by stipulation on June 10, and Foris DAX on June 12, leaving QCX and Crypto.com's derivatives arm, North American Derivatives Exchange, as defendants. The state's motions to send the cases back to state court, and its preliminary-injunction motion against Kalshi, Robinhood and Coinbase, hadn't been decided by Judge Conley as of September 27.
United States v. Wisconsin (2026)
The CFTC and the United States sued Wisconsin in the Eastern District of Wisconsin on April 28, 2026 (No. 2:26-cv-00749), arguing that the Commodity Exchange Act preempts the state's gambling laws as applied to event contracts. Gov. Evers, the Division of Gaming and administrator John Dillett were later dropped by stipulation. In an order signed July 28 and entered July 29, Judge William C. Griesbach denied a preliminary injunction. He found the CFTC unlikely to show that sports event contracts are "swaps," and unlikely to win on preemption even if they are. He also denied motions to intervene by Kalshi, Crypto.com's derivatives exchange and the American Gaming Association, and the state's motions to dismiss and to transfer the case to the Western District.
The federal government appealed on August 7 (7th Cir. No. 26-2636). Kalshi (No. 26-2675) and the AGA (No. 26-2696) appealed the intervention rulings. On August 24 the Seventh Circuit wouldn't expedite the appeal, and it consolidated all three. Opening briefs were due September 21, the state's brief is due October 21 and replies are due November 12, 2026. Judge Griesbach stayed and administratively closed the district case on September 8 pending the appeals.
Ludlow Exchange v. Kaul (2026)
Ludlow Exchange, LLC, which does business as Novig, sued Kaul and Dillett in the Western District of Wisconsin on August 14, 2026 (No. 3:26-cv-00761). It wants a declaration that federal law preempts Wisconsin's gambling laws as applied to its event contracts, and an injunction. The complaint says Novig began offering those contracts in Wisconsin the week before it sued, and that offering them risks a Class I felony charge under s. 945.03(1m). Kaul and Dillett answered on September 10, the case was reassigned to Judge Conley that day, and a pretrial conference is set for October 20, 2026.
The challenge to Act 247 (2026)
WILL sued in Waukesha County Circuit Court in early August 2026 for the Brown County Taxpayers Association and Citizens Defending Liberty. The suit argues that Act 247 authorizes gambling the 1993 amendment forbids, and that a law benefiting only tribal members violates the U.S. Constitution. It asks the court to declare the act unconstitutional and block future compact amendments that add sports betting. We found no ruling as of September 27.
Seventh Circuit posture
The Seventh Circuit, whose rulings bind Wisconsin's federal courts, hasn't decided whether the Commodity Exchange Act preempts state gambling law for sports event contracts. Other circuits have split. The Third Circuit sided with Kalshi against New Jersey in KalshiEX v. Flaherty (No. 25-1922, April 6, 2026), and the Ninth Circuit held in KalshiEX v. Assad (No. 25-7516, August 28, 2026) that Kalshi hadn't shown preemption of Nevada law. New Jersey's petition in Flaherty was docketed at the U.S. Supreme Court as No. 26-299 on September 8, and Kalshi's response is due November 9, 2026. Kaul signed the 39-state amicus brief filed March 10, 2026 on Nevada's side in the Ninth Circuit.
Prediction markets and daily fantasy
The court fights over Kalshi, Polymarket, Robinhood, Coinbase, Crypto.com and Novig are covered above. On May 14, 2026, Evers barred more than 30,000 executive branch employees from using nonpublic information to trade on prediction markets. On July 21 the Wisconsin Elections Commission warned that, under s. 6.03(2), a voter who bets on an election they vote in could be committing a felony, and its counsel's memo treats election trades on Kalshi and Polymarket as bets.
Novig, which the CFTC designated a contract market on June 16, 2026, doesn't exclude Wisconsin on its eligibility page. It requires users to be 21 with ID and builds no vig into its prices.
No state agency licenses daily fantasy sports: the Division of Gaming regulates tribal and charitable gaming. PrizePicks accepts Wisconsin players 18 and older.
Help with a gambling problem
Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling: call 1-800-GAMBLE-5 (1-800-426-2535) or text 850-888-4673.
Sources
Legislative Fiscal Bureau: Tribal Gaming in Wisconsin, Informational Paper 91 (January 2025)
Murphy v. NCAA, No. 16-476 (U.S. Supreme Court, May 14, 2018)
Interior approval of the Oneida Third Amendment (August 16, 2021)
Federal Register: Oneida compact amendment (August 20, 2021)
WPR: Oneida Casino launches legal sports betting (November 30, 2021)
Interior approval of the 2022 Forest County Potawatomi amendment (March 31, 2022)
Federal Register: Forest County Potawatomi amendment (April 12, 2022)
Federal Register: St. Croix Chippewa amendment (April 25, 2022)
Federal Register: Lac Courte Oreilles amendment (September 20, 2022)
Federal Register: Sokaogon Chippewa amendment (November 17, 2022)
Federal Register: Stockbridge-Munsee amendment (October 16, 2024)
Potawatomi Casino Hotel: sports betting now open (March 31, 2023)
WPR: sports betting bill pulled from Assembly calendar (November 19, 2025)
WPR: conservative groups sue to stop online sports betting (August 5, 2026)
Ho-Chunk Nation v. Kalshi, W.D. Wis. No. 3:25-cv-00698 (docket)
Tribal Business News: Ho-Chunk lawsuit against Kalshi proceeds (May 17, 2026)
State of Wisconsin v. QCX, W.D. Wis. No. 3:26-cv-00375 (docket)
State of Wisconsin v. Kalshi, W.D. Wis. No. 3:26-cv-00378 (docket)
State of Wisconsin v. Foris DAX Markets, W.D. Wis. No. 3:26-cv-00381 (docket)
United States v. Wisconsin, E.D. Wis. No. 2:26-cv-00749 (docket)
United States v. Wisconsin, decision and order denying preliminary injunction (July 28, 2026)
Ludlow Exchange v. Kaul, W.D. Wis. No. 3:26-cv-00761 (docket)
KalshiEX LLC v. Flaherty, Third Circuit No. 25-1922 (April 6, 2026)
KalshiEX, LLC v. Assad, Ninth Circuit No. 25-7516 (August 28, 2026)
Amicus brief of Ohio, New Jersey, 37 other states and D.C., Ninth Circuit (March 10, 2026)
WPR: Evers bans state employees from insider prediction-market trading (May 14, 2026)
WPR: Elections Commission warns against ballot betting (July 21, 2026)