The Kansas sports betting marketplace opened its doors to the public as scheduled at noon Central time Thursday, as the state started allowing legal wagers in what has been called a “soft launch.”
Kansas betting apps were live Thursday, including industry stalwarts like BetMGM, DraftKings Sportsbook Kansas, Caesars Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook.
"We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to deliver our award-wining products to Kansas sports fans for the 2022 NFL and college football seasons," Matt Kalish, DraftKings co-founder and president, DraftKings North America, said in a news release Wednesday. “It’s an especially exhilarating time of year, and we are excited for eligible Kansans to be able to get in on all the action through DraftKings’ seamless and responsible sports betting experience.”
The plan as of now is for Kansas to allow licensees to accept wagers to see how the systems work before next Thursday’s grand opening, which coincides with the opening day of the 2022 NFL regular season.
Now that betting is live in the state, BetKansas.com has all the Kansas sportsbook bonus code information.
Cory Thone, who serves as the public information officer of the Kansas Lottery, told BetKansas.com that Thursday’s soft launch is meant to allow operators to work through any issues that could arise for customers so they can hit the ground running a week from now.
“The Sept. 1 'soft launch' is just a way to give our casino partners and their platforms a chance to get up and running, start taking bets, etc. before the official start of the professional football season. Just adds some runway to make sure everything is safe, secure, and functional for our players,” Thone said in an email to BetKansas.com.
Six Kansas Sportsbooks Licensed for Thursday Launch
Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway
- Barstool Sportsbook*
Kansas Star Casino
- FanDuel Sportsbook*
Boot Hill Casino
- DraftKings Sportsbook**
- Golden Nugget***
- Bally Bet***
Kansas Crossing Casino
- BetMGM**
- Caesars Sportsbook**
- PointsBet**
Sporting Kansas City
- Partner TBA
* — Retail and mobile sportsbook licensed to launch Sept. 1.
** — Mobile sportsbook licensed to launch Sept. 1.
*** — Has announced partnership with casino, but has yet to be approved by Kansas Lottery.
Will the “Super Six” sportsbooks launching Thursday be the best Kansas sportsbooks? That remains to be seen. But they are the fortunate ones to get a head start on the rest of the market.
FanDuel Sportsbook Kansas was one of only two retail locations to open in the state Thursday, debuting a temporary location at Kansas Star Casino. The FanDuel Sportsbook grand opening takes place at 10 a.m. Sept. 8, featuring an appearance by former NFL wide receiver Jordy Nelson.
Launch Day Features Plenty of Kansas Sportsbook Promos
The sportsbooks going live in Kansas on Thursday came out of the gate with their best deals.
There was a BetMGM Kansas bonus code pre-registration offer that gave Kansas residents $200 in free bets with no deposit required upon signing up.
BetMGM is also giving new customers in Kansas a risk-free first bet of up to $1,000.
DraftKings Sportsbook Kansas offered new customers $100 in free bets to sign up, while FanDuel was giving customers $150 in free bets with a minimum $10 in deposits and a $5 first bet.
The Caesars Sportsbook Kansas promo code for Kansas features a free bet up to $1,250 if you lose your first real money bet.
