Opponents of Missouri Sports Betting Amendment Shut Down TV Ads in Home Stretch of Campaign • Missouri Independent

The campaign against changing the sports betting constitution on Missouri’s November ballot pulled more than $1 million in television ads on Thursday, just as the group pushing the proposal launched new commercials featuring mistresses Ozzie Smith, shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Independent’s tracking of broadcast reports to the Federal Communications Commission shows Missourians oppose the fraudulent online gambling amendment nearly $4 million aired or reserved worth of television advertising opposing it Change 2.

Thursday’s cancellation resulted in the loss of $1.2 million of those ads, some of which had been purchased weeks ago.

“The ads are being withdrawn so the campaign can shift to more direct contact,” said Brooke Foster, a spokeswoman for Missourians Against the Deceptive Online Gambling Amendment.

“As out-of-state online gaming corporations continue to spend millions of dollars on misleading television advertising, we have decided to focus our efforts on outreach and community conversations in the two and a half weeks leading up to Election Day,” she said in an email.

Since its inception on Sept. 10, the committee has received $14.2 million from Caesars Entertainment-owned casinos in Missouri. In the $2.7 million in television commercials that actually ran, the campaign capitalized on skepticism about the use of gambling taxes and cast doubt on a promise of more than $100 million for educational programs in the top five years will be fulfilled.

Caesars is the only one of these six casino operators in Missouri who actively opposes the ballot measure. One aspect the company rejects is that online gambling platforms could be licensed without having to establish a relationship with a Missouri casino.

The victory for Missouri Education, the committee supporting Amendment 2, is the best-funded legislative campaign in the state’s history. The two largest online bookmakers, FanDuel and DraftKings, have each contributed $15.8 million, and the television and radio advertising campaign has cost nearly $10 million so far. The sports betting advertisement emphasizes that the Missouri Constitution directs all revenue from gambling taxes to educational programs.

Jack Cardetti, a spokesman for Winning for Missouri Education, declined to say why he believed the ads were pulled.

“That’s something you’d have to ask them about,” Cardetti said. “We are focused on the campaign and making sure our message gets across. We feel really good about where we are now.”

In an August St. Louis University/YouGov poll, 50% of voters surveyed said they supported sports betting after reading Amendment 2 ballots, while 30% were opposed. The television ads against Amendment 2 that ran in the first week of September narrowed that lead. Foster said last week.

“It’s definitely aggravated,” she said. “The error rate is close, so we’re really happy about that.”

The win for Missouri Education this week increased the size of some of its television purchases and began to emphasize the measure’s support of professional sports teams — who will be able to set up retail sports betting locations and provide a branded online platform.

“The Amendment 2 campaign will continue to aggressively spread our message,” Cardetti said, “and ensure that Missourians know the benefits of legalizing sports betting until the final hour.”