Maryland: key meeting cancellation delays in-person sports betting launch

The MGM National Harbor in Maryland is one of the three casinos waiting for their licenses to be approved.

2021-10-15

United States

Reading time 1:40 min

The Sports Wagering Application Review Commission was expected to approve the licenses of three casinos during a meeting Thursday, which has not yet been rescheduled. The three properties meet all the qualification requirements to hold a sports wagering license, and have been pre-approved by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission. Regulators still believe sports betting can launch later this fall.

The Sports Wagering Application Review Commission cancelled its scheduled meeting on Thursday. Three casinos in the state are still waiting for their license approval. The meeting has not yet been rescheduled.

However, the Maryland State Lottery and Gaming Control Agency director is confident in-person sports betting can launch later this fall, Saturday Tradition reports.

The Horseshoe Casino in Baltimore, Live! Casino and Hotel in Hanover and MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill all met the qualification requirements to hold a sports wagering license. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission approved their applications and were forwarded to SWARC. The commission intended to approve them at its Thursday meeting.

The three casinos were among 17 entities designated in the approved sports wagering bill to conduct sports betting operations. SWARC voted unanimously that the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission’s qualification standards would be sufficient to award sports betting licenses to all these entities.


Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission offices.

The casinos have already agreed to partnerships with qualified sportsbook operators to handle their in person and online sports betting programs:

Horseshoe Casino partnered with Caesars.
Live! Casino and Hotel with FanDuel.
MGM National Harbor with BetMGM.

Our administration recently approved the first three locations for sports wagering in Maryland.

Tell the legislature’s Sports Wagering Application Review Commission to allow football season betting to begin: [email protected]https://t.co/lV7MUxgSkQ
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) October 8, 2021

Governor Larry Hogan signed Maryland’s sports betting bill into law five months ago. The slow launch has led Hogan to take to his Twitter account and urge Maryland residents to email SWARC to allow football season betting to begin as soon as possible.

Even though Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director John Martin said he hopes the state can begin accepting in-person sports bets “by late fall”, casinos must first be licensed to open their sportsbooks to the public.