JEFFERSON CITY – Former Kansas City Royal Chris Young, who is now Major League Baseball’s vice president of on-field operations, initiatives and strategy, joined State Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer (R-Parkville) in Jefferson City to express support for the sports betting framework being considered by the General Assembly in Senate Bill 327 and Senate Bill 44, as amended.
“A strong partnership among sports leagues, sports betting operators and Missouri is crucial to making regulated sports betting a success and eliminating the thriving online, offshore illegal market,” Young said. “It is great to be back in Missouri today talking with elected leaders about Sen. Luetkemeyer’s proposal to create a best-in-class sports betting framework in Missouri.”
The legislation sponsored by Sen. Luetkemeyer includes numerous integrity protections, mobile betting, use of official league data and a sports league royalty to ensure the leagues can make necessary investments in protecting the fairness of sports contests.
“With the inclusion of key integrity protections and through access to reliable league data, we have developed a framework that would ensure a strong partnership between the leagues, sports fans and the state of Missouri,” Sen. Luetkemeyer said. “I am hopeful that today’s visit will help us advance this important legislation so that we can soon end the illegal sports betting market in Missouri.”