The second license to offer in-person sports betting in Massachusetts was finally approved on Monday, marking further progress toward the launch of legal event wagering in the Bay State.
Members of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) initially began their review of a sports betting license application from MGM Springfield earlier in the month. However, that proceeding hit a snag over the casino’s ties to BetMGM, which will be the facility’s retail and mobile wagering partner.
Massachusetts’ sports-betting law allows for both retail and online sports betting sites, although the two forms of wagering require separate licenses to offer them. MGM Springfield was applying for a so-called “Category 1” license that permits in-person sports wagering at the facility and through two digital platforms, the latter of which requires a “Category 3” license to operate.
The company you keep
MGM Springfield’s application noted that it “intends to offer its sports wagering product in close coordination with BetMGM,” a joint venture between MGM Resorts International (the operator of MGM Springfield) and Entain PLC. Gaming commissioners wound up initially deferring a decision so they could receive more information.
The casino made an additional submission for its application that members of the MGC then scrutinized on Monday, and MGM Springfield included sections to try to ease any concerns the regulators may have.
“MGMS is excited to have engaged BetMGM as its sports wagering service provider,” the updated application states. “However, all final decisions regarding retail sports wagering will be in MGMS’s sole and absolute discretion.”
A first-class idea
Monday’s progress means there have now been three sports-betting licenses approved in Massachusetts, two of which are for in-person sports betting at casinos and one for mobile sports betting via WynnBET. The MGC is hoping to start sports wagering at the casinos in late January and at online sportsbooks in early March.
That timeline looks like it is still intact, at least for the time being. Nevertheless, the Bay State’s gaming commissioners have been very thorough with their examinations of the applications before them and have deferred several decisions to allow them time to receive additional information.
Although commissioners and representatives for MGM Springfield spent hours going over the details of the application and asking and answering questions about the planned sports-betting operations at the casino, ultimately, the MGC decided their expectations were met. The MGC members found MGM Springfield met the criteria and was suited for a Category 1 license.
Like its peers, MGM Springfield intends to offer customers a way to both wager on and watch events. According to its application, the company behind the casino has built “a first-class Sports Wagering lounge with stadium seating, a 45ft viewing wall, as well as an enclosed wagering counter and space for wagering kiosks.”
BetMGM, meanwhile, is hoping to launch in the Massachusetts market as soon as possible.
Commissioners went into a closed-door, executive session regarding the bookmaker’s application at around 7 p.m. ET. on Monday. The regulators were still working through the application when this story was published.
