Maryland Sports Betting Rewrite Passes Senate & House
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Following the November 2020 election, where Maryland voters passed legalized sports betting, all eyes were turned to the Maryland legislature awaiting for them to put the rules and laws into place to launch sports betting. Now, on Monday, April 12th, 2021, it seems that everything is set up for sports betting to begin the launching process.
After a couple of months of back and forth debate, a bill got passed by the Maryland House that would launch sports betting. Following that, the Senate took that bill and restructured it to allow 60 online operators instead of 15 and pushed the number of retail licenses to 30. It also expanded what the retail licenses were able to do. That restructured bill passed the Senate in an unheard-of 47-0 vote, and later that same day, the Maryland House passed the vote 112-16-1.
This means that the bill will now go to the Governor’s desk can be signed into law as early as the end of this week. The Maryland Gaming Commission will then begin its process of licensing and regulating in the state, and many hope that sports betting will launch by the start of the 2021 NFL season.
Maryland Sports Betting Details
In an incredible change of events, Maryland sports betting will be receiving just about unlimited licenses, as the new bill allows up to 60 online sportsbooks and 30 retail sportsbooks. No other state has received this many licenses, including industry leaders New Jersey and Pennslyvania.
The first sportsbooks to launch will most likely be retail sportsbooks at the major commercial casinos in Maryland. Each of these casinos will most likely partner with an online sportsbook to offer their services both in-person and online. An example of this is MGM National Harbor which will use MGM International Resorts’ online sportsbook BetMGM to offer online sports betting.
One change from the House’s bill to the Senate’s was the restrictions on the licenses given out to professional sports teams. Before, these teams were limited to operation on game days with 10,000 ticketed patrons. However, they now will be able to offer betting year-round. The three major stadiums in Maryland are Oriole Park at Camden Yards, FedEx Field, and M&T Bank Stadium.
One important note that has not changed is the fact that you will be able to wager on in-state collegiate programs such as the University of Maryland. This is something that neighboring states like Virginia and New Jersey do not allow.
Unlike some states, Maryland will be giving licenses out to small businesses and local sportsbooks. This means that some bars and restaurants will have their own licenses. These licenses will be a separate class and will have a lower tax rate than the big commercial licenses for online betting and major venus with the new Senate bill.
When Will Sports Betting Launch
The exact dates are unknown, but sports betting should come quickly to Maryland. Everything is set up, and once the bill is signed by the Governor, all parties will be good to go. It all depends on how fast the Maryland Gaming Commission can organize and get licenses out. These sportsbooks have been through this several times before and should be able to put together everything needed to launch extremely quickly. I would not be shocked to see sports betting launch right in time for Week 1 of the NFL season.
