Maryland online sports betting is now fully live

After more than two years of planning, Maryland mobile sports betting is now fully live.

Online sports betting launched in the Old Line State at 9 a.m. this morning. State voters approved sports betting in November 2020 and Gov. Larry Hogan (R) signed the sports betting bill into law on May 18, 2021.

Retail sports betting launched in the state in December 2021.

Maryland sports betting operators now full go

Seven operators fully launched their sports betting services this morning. Last week, the Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) approved 10 operators for online sports betting licenses, but only seven announced they would be launching today.

“This marks a culmination of years of efforts to get sports betting fully up and running in the state of Maryland,” Gov. Hogan said during yesterday’s launch announcement.

These seven operators have reached all regulatory requirements to launch.

Barstool Sportsbook
BetMGM
Caesars Sportsbook
DraftKings
FanDuel
PointsBet
Rush Street Interactive

BetFanatics, BetFred, and Parx Interactive were also approved by SWARC for online sports betting licenses, but are not ready to launch today. The MLGCA is working closely with all three to guide them through the operational requirements they must complete before launching. No launch timing for the remaining three operators has been announced.

In total, SWARC received 21 applications for online sports betting licenses. The MLGCA is currently in the process of conducting background investigations for the remaining 11 applicants. The applicants will not be revealed until the MLGCA completes all necessary investigations and license hearings are scheduled.

Sports betting revenue figures for the month of November will be release on Monday, Dec. 12, and will include data on both online and retail sport betting. Revenue data will not be released prior to that date.

By the 2023 NFL season, Martin said he expects up to 21 online sports betting operators and between 15 to 20 retail operators to be live in the state.

Long time coming for Maryland

Hogan’s announcement comes 553 days after he signed Maryland’s sports betting bill into law and 746 days after Maryland voters approved the state’s sports betting bill. It is the longest delay between a bill being signed into law and an online bet being placed for any state that has legalized sports betting.

Maryland sports betting revenue estimates provided by Spectrum Gaming were shared at the SWARC meeting last week. For the state’s first year operation, a representative said estimates place Maryland sports betting gross gaming revenue at $123.3 million, which translates to $26.4 million in taxes.

By year five? The representative said estimates for the state jump to $542.4 million in gross gaming revenue with $99.7 million in taxes.