SNOQUALMIE, WA – The Snoqualmie Casino made history with the opening of the first sportsbook in Washington State, just ahead of the NFL’s first regular season game.
“It is only because of the hard work and collaboration between the Washington State Gambling Commission, the Snoqualmie Gaming Commission and our casino team members that we are able to accomplish this milestone in time for the kick-off of the NFL season,” said Stanford Le, CEO and President of Snoqualmie Casino. Snoqualmie Casino received regulatory approval on August 31, allowing the licensing of vendors, one of the final steps in opening.
Currently, sports bettors can place wagers at the sportsbook ticket window or at any of the six kiosks throughout the casino floor. Within weeks of opening, mobile betting will be available within a geo-fence perimeter of Snoqualmie Casino.
“The Snoqualmie Tribe is proud that its casino is the first to launch sports wagering in Washington,” said Snoqualmie Tribe Chairman Robert de los Angeles. “Sports in the Pacific Northwest represents a source of pride for our team members and our neighbors. It is with great joy that we celebrate the new football season by launching the closest sportsbook to Seattle’s sports district.”
“The kickoff of sports wagering is the result of hard work by the Washington State Gambling Commission and the tribes that began more than a year ago,” said Bud Sizemore, Chairman of the Washington State Gambling Commission. “Working with our tribal partners and tribal gaming agencies we negotiated compact amendments, developed new rules and learned the intricacies of operating professional sports books. Together we built a sports wagering menu that will offer casino customers a wide array of gaming opportunities on sporting events from around the world. Commission staff along with our tribal partners were able to get all this done in time to meet the goal of being ready for the beginning of the 2021 NFL regular season. The work reflects our commitment to protect the public by ensuring that gambling is legal and honest.”
The agreed upon sports wagering menu includes: baseball, basketball, boxing, football, golf, MMA, motorsports, soccer, tennis, NCAA baseball, NCAA basketball and NCAA football. Sports wagering may not be conducted on any minor league sport; and sports wagering may not be conducted on any collegiate sport event or collegiate athletic event offered or sponsored by a Washington collegiate institution.
Former Seattle SuperSonics All-Star, Shawn Kemp placed the first bet to a crowd of several hundred sports bettors and spectators. “This is the start of something really big around here,” said Kemp.
On March 25, 2020, Governor Jay Inslee signed House Bill 2638 that authorizes sports wagering for Class III tribal facilities under terms negotiated in tribal-state compacts.