DeWine's proposed sports betting tax hike could pay for Paycor Stadium upgrades

DeWine’s proposed sports betting tax hike could pay for Paycor Stadium upgrades

Posted by author February 4, 2025 Gambling

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As Hamilton County and the Bengals wrangle over how to fund major upgrades needed to Paycor Stadium, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has suggested gamblers could pay for some of it.

In his two-year state budget proposal released Monday, DeWine proposed raising Ohio’s sports gaming tax from 20% to 40% to generate money for professional sports facilities and youth sports.

DeWine said the tax hike on sports bettors would bring in $130 million to $180 million a year.

What could sports betting money mean for Paycor Stadium?

This could provide a potential pool of money for Hamilton County to upgrade Paycor Stadium. The county and Bengals are negotiating a new lease on the 25-year-old county-owned stadium. That will likely involve making expensive improvements to the stadium and surrounding area.

One proposal unveiled in September by an architect contracted by the county showed $1.2 billion worth of upgrades, including new team offices, practice facilities, luxury suites and seating.

Exactly what will need to be done to Paycor hasn’t yet been determined and will likely be decided during the negotiations between the county and team on a new lease. The current one expires in 2026, but the Bengals can exercise five extensions of two years for the current lease.

Commissioners want more buy-in from state, NFL

Calls to the three Hamilton County commissioners were not immediately returned on Tuesday. They have expressed a desire for contributions from the state, team and NFL in upgrading the stadium. Hamilton County Commissioner Alicia Reece has asked for the NFL to kick in $100 million for Paycor Stadium.

“My goal is to have a diversified plan,” Reece said during a meeting in December 2023. “Everybody is looking at that. NFL, you’re putting skin in the game for other teams. You need to put some skin in the game for our team. Give us some respect.”

Why DeWine thinks sports betting is the logical source

For DeWine, sports betting companies seemed to be a logical source of money for these kinds of projects. It wouldn’t just help Cincinnati and Hamilton County. It could also help Cleveland as the Cleveland Browns prepare to move to a new domed stadium.

DeWine called sports betting companies “extremely aggressive” and said Ohioans lose massive amounts of money to them each year.

“It seems to be only just and fair that some stadiums be paid for by them and it seems also fair that our young people, who you know they are targeting, will get some benefit by being able to play sports,” DeWine said.

This story was updated to add a video.