Massachusetts Sports Betting Moving Forward
Sports betting in Massachusetts is a slow-moving process, but things are starting to move forward. The next big step will be issuing licenses to sportsbooks that submit applications.
Massachusetts Sports Betting Moving Forward
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission continues to move forward very slowly with the process of setting up the online sports betting industry. The commission had a meeting earlier this week, but no significant action was taken.
The first set of sports betting rules have been published, and the commission is currently accepting public comments. At this time, there have been no comments submitted by members of the public, but that window is still open.
Monday, October 17 is a big day in this process as all interested sports betting operators must have a scoping survey turned in by that date. Any operator that fails to fill out the form, and fill it out correctly, will be removed from consideration for a license.
As of the previous meeting on Thursday, there were just five sports betting operators that submitted the survey. This number is going to see a significant jump over the weekend as the MGC will likely be flooded with requests.
The MGC is still on a timeline that will launch retail sports betting in late January before the Super Bowl, and the hope is to get online sports betting up and running by March Madness. There are still some doubters that think Massachusetts might miss those marks, but operators are ready to launch when finally given the green light.
MGC Working With GLI
While much of the meeting provided very little new information to those that were following along, there was one big announcement made. The MGC has signed a contract with Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) and those partners will work together in the launch.
GLI is a big name in the sports betting industry and it provides states help with certification and testing. While the MGC has been coming up with basic rules and regulations up to this point, GLI is expected to help craft the official rules moving forward.
Adding GLI to the team should help the process speed up in the future and the two sides will start working together immediately. With the MGC adding a company like GLI into the fold, other sports betting operators are expected to be more willing to apply for a license.
Big Operators Will be Left Out
Retail casino properties in Massachusetts are going to be able to partner with an online sports betting operator to offer betting. Several of those casinos have already been working on finding a partner, but it’s a very limited amount.
Massachusetts is also going to allow up to seven online only sports betting licenses to be available, and competition is expected to be strong for those licenses. As many as 40 operators have at least expressed some interest, and it could overwhelm the MGC when they start flooding in.
Some members of the commission worry about the amount of time it will take to really take a close look at all of the applicants.
