Maryland bettors should be able to place their first mobile sports wagers before Thanksgiving. The Maryland Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) awarded 10 licenses November 16, according to Sports Handle. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency is expected to reveal a start date in the coming days.
“We had originally planned our next meeting to be November 21, but we’ve been working with our consultants from Taft Stettinius & Hollister and Spectrum Gaming Group to accelerate the pace and hold it earlier,” SWARC Chairman Thomas Brandt said in a press release.
The applicants approved include:
- Barstool Sportsbook
- Betfred
- BetMGM
- betPARX
- BetRivers
- Caesars Sportsbook
- DraftKings
- Fanatics
- FanDuel
- PointsBet
The Maryland Lottery qualified the 10 in late October. Other applicants still require approval by the lottery before applying to SWARC, Brandt said. Those reviews expect to be completed in time for the December 10 meeting.
The initial licensees will be part of controlled demonstrations with the Maryland Lottery to ensure the system works as promised. The demonstrations, the last hurdle before going live, could take a few days before issuing a license. Each licensee has to offer a successful validation for lottery officials prior to getting the go-ahead. Operators will reach out to prospective customers to participate. Licensees must also turn in a memorandum of understanding as well as a diversity plan. The lottery agency will review each responsible gaming plan and check internal control systems.
Once the lottery is satisfied with the results during the controlled demonstration phase, a license is officially issued, and the operator can go live without any restrictions.
“Our staff has been in continuous contact with these mobile sports wagering businesses and have already guided them through many of the necessary steps,” Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director John Martin said in a press release.
The demonstrations, also known as a soft launch, are not ideal from a customer experience standpoint, especially for first time customers, Paul Hannon, PointsBet’s senior vice president of corporate development, told Sports Handle. PointsBet is among the operators likely to launch a mobile sportsbook in Maryland by the end of this month.
On the plus side, a soft launch is a common procedure for physical sportsbooks, so Hannon doesn’t expect the controlled demonstration process to be a challenge for the mobile operators.
“That’s very standard on the casino side where you soft launch for a period of time, temporarily pause operations, do an audit, and then come back and re-launch again for a grand opening,” Hannon said.
Operators could theoretically mitigate possible statewide confusion by limiting how many customers are allowed to wager during the soft launch, but Hannon says PointsBet doesn’t plan to limit initial sign-ups. There’s little benefit to the sportsbook operator to do so, as reduced confusion during the controlled demonstration doesn’t outweigh the desire to quickly gain market share in the state’s mobile market.
Maryland’s soft launch will carry no restriction on the number of customers. With some people likely unaware of how the controlled demonstrations work, however, it’s possible some users will become frustrated when a mobile wagering platform temporarily goes offline.
“Mobile wagering will account for the bulk of the revenue from sports wagering, and we’re eager to enable Maryland to enter that market,” Brandt said.
The ten licenses are part of a group of 21 applicants, according to PlayMaryland, with the other 11 applicants waiting for SWARC approval for mobile licenses. Maryland law permits up to 60 mobile licenses, with applications reviewed as they come in.
During the November 16 SWARC meeting, consultants Spectrum Gaming Group and the Taft Law Firm estimate the state will collect $26.4 million in 2023, to be used to fund education. Taxes should reach almost $100 million by 2027.
PlayMaryland predicts the first full year will generate almost $4 billion in handle, producing $480 million in revenue, resulting in $72 million in taxes.
