For Immediate Release: April 24, 2026
Oneida Nation Reservation, WI – The Oneida Nation supports the recent action taken by the Wisconsin Department of Justice to enforce state gambling laws and uphold the legal framework governing sports betting and gaming activities in Wisconsin.
For decades, legal gaming in Wisconsin has been carefully structured under federal law, including the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and through negotiated tribal-state gaming compacts. These agreements recognize and protect the sovereign rights of tribes, including the Oneida Nation, to operate certain forms of gaming within the state. They also provide regulatory certainty, consumer protection, and significant economic benefits for both tribal governments and the State of Wisconsin.
The Oneida Nation is concerned that so-called “event contracts” or prediction market offerings that function like sports betting—when offered outside of this established framework— undermine the integrity of Wisconsin’s gambling laws and the rights guaranteed to tribes under federal law and state compacts. Rebranding or novel terminology does not change the underlying function of wagering on sporting outcomes, nor does it negate long-standing legal restrictions.
At the same time, the Oneida Nation acknowledges that prediction markets are a developing area nationally and are the subject of ongoing legal and regulatory debate. Questions about their appropriate scope, oversight, and role in financial or commodity markets merit careful consideration by regulators and policymakers. Those discussions, however, must not come at the expense of existing laws or tribal rights.
Tribal nations have invested heavily and responsibly in gaming operations that are regulated, transparent, and accountable. These operations fund essential government services, create jobs, and support community development across Wisconsin. Unregulated and unauthorized sports wagering platforms operate outside the law and the compact system and threaten this balance.
“The Oneida Nation stands firmly in support of fair enforcement of Wisconsin law and respect for tribal sovereignty. Any expansion, reinterpretation, or innovation in wagering or gaming-related activities should occur only through lawful processes that honor federal statutes, tribal-state compacts, and the government-to-government relationship between tribes and the State of Wisconsin,” stated Chairman Tehassi Hill.
The Oneida Nation remains committed to working collaboratively with state leaders, regulators, and fellow tribes to protect the integrity of gaming in Wisconsin and to ensure that innovation does not come at the cost of established law or tribal rights.
Contact:
Bobbi Webster
Oneida Nation Public Relations Director
bwebst@oneidanation.org
920-819-8357
