Lawmakers in North Dakota are yet to legalize sports betting. However, sportsbook operators are moving quickly to establish their presence in the state. On Friday, International Gaming Technology took one such proactive step and announced a new deal with the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians.

A tribal deal for IGT

The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians runs two casinos in the state and would be the first casino in the region to offer sports betting to users. IGT informed in a press release that the deal will include trading services, self-service kiosks, and the sports betting platform of the company.

Lawmakers in the state do not seem keen to bring a sports betting legalization bill in 2020. The last time the state legislature was looking at a bill for sports betting was in 2019. However, the bill being discussed then included only a limited framework and didn’t describe a tax structure for the industry. It made through the House but did not pass the Senate.

How will IGT deal work?

Even though there is a lack of regulation in the state for sports betting, tribal casinos do not need approval from the state to offer this product. The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians owns one casino in Belcourt and one in Trenton, located at the Montana Border.

Enrico Drago, senior vice president of IGT PlayDigital said,

“IGT is excited to expand our sports betting footprint to North Dakota through this agreement with Turtle Mountain, and we’re happy to continue delivering our superlative PlaySports platform technology and services to casinos and venues of all sizes.”

None of the neighboring states of North Dakota are currently offering full-fledged mobile sports betting which could help the IGT sportsbook flourish. Montana has retail sports betting service at lottery retailers via betting state since March 2020. South Dakota has to decide the fate of wagering in November. If they vote yes, Deadwood could become the hub of athletic wagering in the state.