Maryland Online Sports Betting Takes Big Step Forward

A Thursday meeting of the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission (MLGCC) represented the culmination of months of work and anticipation for many parties. During the meeting, the commissioners nearly unanimously recommended several Maryland sports betting licenses for multiple applicants.

The recommendations mean some of the biggest brands in US online sports betting are nearly ready to start accepting bets in the Old Line State. Some local operations were part of Thursday’s confirmations as well.

MLGCC votes to recommend Maryland sports betting licenses

In its meeting on Thursday morning, the MLGCC approved over 20 sports betting license recommendations. The Commission’s approval is nearly the final step for 10 online licenses. The recipients of those recommendations are:

• American Wagering (which does business in Maryland as Caesars)
• Barstool
• Betfred
• BetMGM
• RSI MD (which does business in Maryland as BetRivers)
• DraftKings
• Bet Fair Interactive US (which does busines
  s in Maryland as FanDuel)
• Fanatics
• Parx Interactive
• PointsBet Maryland

The MGLCC also approved recommendations for 10 mobile licenses. Further approval for those licenses is up to the Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC). Those recommendations were awarded to:

• Arundel Amusements (which does business in Maryland as Bingo World)
• BetMGM Maryland Sports
• Crown MD Gaming (connected to DraftKings)
• CZR Maryland Mobile Opportunity (connected to Caesars)
• Greenmount Station (connected to Parx)
• Live! Casino and Hotel
• Long Shot’s
• Maryland Stadium Sub (connected to FedEx Field)
• Penn Maryland OSB/Hollywood Casino
• Riverboat on the Potomac (connected to PointsBet)

Long Shot’s, which runs off-track-betting parlors in Frederick and Hagerstown, also received a recommendation for a Class B2 license. Final approval would allow the parlors to take bets on sporting events from visitors to the venues.

Greenmount Station in Hampstead plans to start taking bets in-person on Friday. Like its competition, betParx could be available for bettors in the state by Thanksgiving.

So what happens now?

The license approval process for online Maryland sports betting has several steps. Neither the MLGCC nor the SWARC itself can actually award licenses on its own. For online licenses and Class B2 licenses, a recommendation from the SWARC is one of the final steps.

The SWARC considers the suitability of applicants and evaluates applicants’ business plans. Currently, the next meeting date for the SWARC is unknown. While monthly meetings have largely been the norm, the SWARC did meet three times in September.

After the SWARC considers the applications, those applicants that receive further recommendations will undergo a testing period. If that testing goes well, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency then award licenses. The same body also tells the licensees when they can start accepting bets.

While the MLGCC provided no updates on Thursday, the license recommendations on Thursday suggest that Thanksgiving 2022 is an optimistic but possible launch date for at least some online sportsbooks in Maryland. All the companies that got positive votes from the MLGCC are certainly one big step closer to going live.