What Next for Sportsbook in Maryland?
Slowly but surely, legalized sportsbook is coming into play across the United States.
Only seven states have no active legislation in 2020, and a further 12 failed with legislation. The rest have either an active bill, a passed bill, or have already legalized sportsbook and wagers. As we move through 2021, more states will be joining the likes of Illinois, Pennsylvania and New Jersey in allowing sports wagers in licensed venues.
The benefits to a state are significant, New jersey broke the record for the most money wagered on sporting events in a single month last year, taking $668m in August, then doing it again in September with $748m. That is a huge amount of tax dollars into the local economy, benefiting everyone involved. Very soon, Maryland will join those states allowing sportsbook, after voters authorized wagers in the state. The question posed was this: should sports wagers be allowed in the state with the tax money going toward education?’ 67% voted yes, paving the way for sportsbook.
Sen. Craig Zucker was the man who introduced a sports wagering bill in Maryland, which passed the Senate unanimously in March 2020. Due to the recent pandemic, the bill did not make it to the House, hence the simplified vote. Sen. Zucker has since clarified what the vote means for the state going into 2021.
“I think it means that sports betting will be up and running sometime soon,” he told Press Box Online. “It gives Marylanders the opportunity to do it in-state and not have to drive across state lines to wager on sports. And it also means that tens of millions of dollars will be coming back to the state of Maryland that’s currently being lost and going to other states.”
As to how that might look at the sharp end, where the punter meets the provider, he believes a mix of both online and physical establishments is the way forward for Maryland.
“I envision a scenario where we have online and bricks-and-mortar. Obviously, that’ll be part of the discussion that we have down the line, but there wasn’t much opposition to the online presence, which I think keeps up with other states — making sure we’re competitive with other states — and also making it accessible to people to do sports betting. And I also think we’re going to have it at your bricks-and-mortar places as well.”
Much of the success in other states is down to the passion Americans have for sport, something we share here in Maryland. Tuxslots, who have several sports betting articles, outline how American football is one of the most popular sports that people like to bet on, and with the Ravens making the playoff game recently, the scope for wagers would have been huge. It is not just football that draws punters though, soccer and MLS, in particular, is also popular, more so than basketball and horse racing. That means neighboring DC United could become a focus for customers, as well as the new Maryland Bobcats soccer team.
As for a potential timescale, Sen. Zucker is hopeful that something may be in place by the summer, in time for next year’s football season.
“My hope would be to have it up and running sometime over the summer,” he added. “I think the Maryland State Gaming and Lottery Commission can start working on [regulations] now. We figure out a good, fair, competitive sports betting bill that we pass. And then we’ll have the regs in place, and we just get it up and running as quick as possible.”
That can only be good news for sports fans in Maryland.
