Super Bowl Title or Legal Gambling in Texas?

The future of the Dallas Cowboys in terms of winning another Super Bowl, and the legalization of sports betting in Texas, are closely tied to Jerry Jones.

If you had to bet, the smart bet is that Texas will allow gambling before Jerry hoists another Lombardi trophy. The odds on both are somewhere between “Terrible” and “Terrible, horrible, brutal, horrible horrible.”

At least according to those in the know, Jerry has a better chance of winning a fourth Super Bowl trophy as general manager of the Cowboys than we Texans have of betting on sports (legally).

You can only place bets abroad, in Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, and now many other states across America. Currently, 38 states, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, have legalized sports betting.

On this issue, we remain locked in the Alamo, with Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick playing Davy Crockett against prosecutor Jerry Jones, who in this scenario is Santa Anna. Of the many threads of his legacy in sports, securing legal sports betting in Texas may ultimately be the most difficult thread on Jerry’s list.

“I don’t want to sound like a politician, but that mindset and that state of mind (of people) and (sports betting) has to get into an order of priority and an order of importance for something like this,” Jerry said Wednesday. “You have to create a level of importance, and that level of importance sometimes takes years to establish, or some other visible, tangible, ‘Other states are doing this, or some states are doing this,’ for it to happen.”

“That’s a long and roundabout way of saying that we’ll eventually have sports betting in the state of Texas until the state loses an opportunity to bring in huge revenue.”

If Jerry really wants this, 2.5 things need to happen:

1. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is leaving office.

Although Texas is surrounded by gambling on all sides, Patrick has made it clear that he has no interest in legal gambling. On this issue and many others, he is the czar, prime minister, dictator, president and Darth Vader.

There are naturally murmurs in Austin about his future, specifically how long he plans to stay in the job and who will succeed him. At 74, it’s doubtful he’ll leave the job without putting himself in a position to have influence beyond the big chair.

In 2024, Texas Rep. Charlie Geren, a Fort Worth Republican, delayed a vote on allowing resort-style casinos until 2027. That’s no coincidence.

The Texas Legislature is in session again next year, and Patrick’s future in office will be a top topic of off-the-record discussions among government officials.

His successor is in no position to exploit Patrick’s vindictive power. Austin lawmakers know better than to oppose him, and in this case, it’s not worth it. He will say publicly that he would consider legalizing sports betting if Texas senators bring it to his attention.

This doesn’t happen without a reason.

2. Jerry will have to personally go to Austin to lobby legislators.

Using an analogy to the Alamo, Santa Anna is currently sitting on his yacht and has tasked well-paid soldiers with capturing the Alamo.

If Jerry really wants to see legal sports betting in Texas, he’ll have to get off his yacht, grab a sword, and personally attack the Alamo. There’s no more influential or persuasive sports team owner in the world. If this is something he really cares about, he can’t rely on anyone else.

The major teams in the state are lobbying for the bill to be passed, as they all imagine the scenario of a “sports betting” in the appropriate locations. Now, teams in the state have joined forces to lobby Austin legislators to legalize sports betting. Those efforts have not had much effect.

Jerry has one advantage in this debate that he didn’t have before. While former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was a major ally in legalizing sports betting, the person who replaced him will take a much bigger interest in it.

Mavs principal owner Patrick Dumont is president and chief operating officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp. He bought the Mavericks as an investment and as an entry point into Texas in case gambling fades away.

2.5. Texas desperately needs money.

“Huge amounts of revenue” have been the argument for casinos and legal sports betting for nearly 20 years. Because the Texas government has a surplus of more than $32 million without those “huge amounts of revenue” from gambling, lawmakers have no immediate need to address the issue.

There is a greater chance that a casino will be built before sports betting is allowed. In a casino, the customer must be 21 years old, while in a sportsbook, it can be a child with a mobile phone and an app.

This is where Texas places its bets on gambling, and specifically sports betting.

Given the current state of affairs, the Dallas Cowboys will be celebrating their fourth Super Bowl under Jerry’s leadership before we Texans can place bets at a casino or wager on games in Texas.