Sports betting is now available in Milwaukee at Potawatomi Casino, and the mayor made the first bet

The Potawatomi Hotel & Casino welcomed Milwaukee mayor Cavalier Johnson to its temporary sportsbook setup Friday to cast the first legal sports bet in the city's history.

Johnson put down $20 on the Milwaukee Bucks winning it all, an Urban Milwaukee story noted. At odds of +250, that would net him $50 if Milwaukee indeed captures the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

Under an agreement between the tribe and Gov. Tony Evers signed in 2022, the venue becomes the second offering a sportsbook in Wisconsin, joining the Oneida Casino in Green Bay. It's one of several compacts that will allow sports books at tribal casinos across the state.

"There's a big sports betting fan base here," said sports book director Justin Arnett. "Everywhere I go when people find out I'm involved in sports betting, they ask about it. It's very clear to me that there's a major underlying demand. It's busier than I expected, to be honest, in the middle of the day on Friday, and we didn't put too much out on it too early. All that points to latent demand."

The venue will construct a permanent sportsbook home, part of the renovation that included the shuttering of the Northern Lights Theater. Arnett said the facility is still in the design face and he couldn't put a firm timetable on it, but expected it to open within the next year.

How do you place a sports bet in Milwaukee?

Potawatomi Hotel and Casino is located at 1721 W. Canal Street in Milwaukee. The location offers 17 self-service kiosks, or bets can taken placed by the ticket-writer at the counter near the skywalk and on the casino floor. The casino website offers a how-to guide (including videos); bettors can use cash or a prepaid voucher to make the bet. All bets must be made on site.

Those who wish to bet can select the sport, game and line that they prefer and find the bet type and preferred wager outcome. In other words, find your matchup, take a look at the odds and choose your winner.

You can then decide how much you want to bet and place it. Bettors need to keep their ticket to claim any winnings, exclusively retrievable at the sportsbook casino cage.

Odds sheets are available on site, as are boards displaying the odds. There's also a full service bar and televisions to watch.

Arnett said for those uncomfortable with the digital kiosks, the staff is there to answer any questions and build the bet a customer is seeking.

"We don't bite," he said. "if you don't know, ask. We're very laid back."

How do odds work?

Johnson's bet is an example of a "futures" bet. If odds stand at +100 for a team that's been selected to win a championship, it means every $100 bet on that team will yield $100 dollars of winning (so you get your money back plus another $100, which is $200 total payout). So if odds on the Bucks are +250, $100 would net $250 and one-fifth of that bet ($20) would net one-fifth the winnings ($50).

There are many other types of bets. There's a more common point-spread or handicap bet where you pick a team to win by a score that's plus or minus a certain point value (if Green Bay is favored to win with a -6 1/2 spread, it means you could choose the Packers, but they'd need to win by seven or more).

You can simply make a "win" or "moneyline" bet that chooses who you think will win a certain contest. Easy peasey, though perhaps not as lucrative a payout.

You can make an over/under bet, choosing whether you think a certain value will be greater or less than what's suggested by the sports book (like if you think two teams will combine for more or less than 200 points in a basketball game). There are also a number of "prop" bets that can cover more specific minutiae (like who scores first in a soccer game) aside from the final outcome and "parlays" that yield a greater volume of winnings if you choose two or more outcomes correctly, needing success in all of them to earn the prize.

Arnett said, for example, there are more than 250 ways a bettor can put money on a single NBA game.

Which teams can you bet on?

State regulations have stipulated that casino-goers cannot bet on Wisconsin-based teams (such as Marquette or Wisconsin), nor on events within Wisconsin's borders unless special exception is granted.

Arnett said those exceptions have been granted for the major sports teams (Bucks, Brewers, Packers), so bettors can still make bets on those contests whether inside or outside the state's borders. He said he's willing to pursue future exceptions for major events like the upcoming Sonsio Grand Prix IndyCar race at Road America.

All major sports are represented, including UFC, boxing, golf, Formula One and NASCAR. Arnett said the slate even extends to darts, rugby, table tennis and major eating competitions.

"We're approved for the Oscars and the Grammys and tons of soccer leagues," Arnett said.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Temporary sports book now open at Potawatomi Casino in Milwaukee