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Wisconsin’s federal appeal over sports event contracts is moving through the 7th Circuit, with appellants’ reply briefs due Nov. 12. Reporting by Racine County Eye also highlights Michigan’s Eagle Casino & Sports and Four Winds as examples of online gambling arrangements involving tribal and state law.
Michigan operators illustrate tribal and state oversight
Eagle Casino & Sports is owned and operated by the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan. According to the report, it is licensed by the Saginaw Chippewa Gaming Commission for wagering inside the Isabella Indian Reservation and by the Michigan Gaming Control Board for wagering elsewhere in Michigan.
The report also cites the online player agreement of the Pokagon Gaming Authority, doing business as Four Winds Casino Resort. That agreement is governed by Pokagon Band law, with Michigan law applying only when it is not inconsistent with the band’s law.
These arrangements provide a comparison for a separate Wisconsin dispute over mobile wagering tied to tribal lands and gaming compacts.
Federal appeal turns on whether sports contracts are swaps
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission argues that sports event contracts are swaps subject to exclusive federal authority. Wisconsin argues they are sports bets prohibited under state law.
In July, Judge William Griesbach denied the CFTC’s request for a preliminary injunction blocking Wisconsin from enforcing its laws against event-contract sites such as Kalshi and CDNA. He found that the agency had not demonstrated a likelihood of success because it had not shown that those sports bets meet the definition of swaps.
“Wisconsin’s gambling statutes do not conflict with federal commodities regulations and are not preempted by them,” Griesbach wrote.
On Aug. 24, the appeals court denied a motion to expedite and consolidated the case with separate appeals by KalshiEX and the American Gaming Association. The report lists Oct. 21 as the deadline for Wisconsin’s consolidated brief, but does not confirm whether it was filed. Appellants’ replies, if any, are due Nov. 12.
Wisconsin mobile betting law faces a separate challenge
In Waukesha County Circuit Court, two taxpayer groups are challenging 2025 Wisconsin Act 247.
The law excludes certain electronic wagers from Wisconsin’s definition of a bet when the bettor is in Wisconsin, the server is on federally recognized tribal lands in the state, and wagering operates under a tribal gaming compact entered into before April 1, 1993.
The plaintiffs argue that the act violates Wisconsin’s constitutional restrictions on gambling and raises equal protection concerns. They seek to block Gov. Tony Evers and three other officials from authorizing or administering mobile sports betting, including through compact amendments.
The state argues that the plaintiffs lack standing and fail to state a claim. A scheduling conference in Brown County Taxpayers Association v. Evers is set for Nov. 9.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER, which connects to Michigan’s Problem Gambling Helpline 24/7.
More from playmichigan.com – Michigan Online Gambling Revenue Reaches $355.7 Million in September – Jim Townsend Named Chair of Michigan Gaming Control Board – Ananich Resigns as Chair of Michigan Gaming Control Board
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Source: As reported by Racine County Eye.
