MASSACHUSETTS GAMING COMMISSION LAUNCHES STUDY ON LEGAL SPORTS BETTING

Dave Schwab Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

The effort to bring legal sports betting to the state of Massachusetts just took another twist. At the request of the state’s Senate, further studies on the matter will be conducted.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) will oversee the study. The goal is to highlight the benefits of legal sports betting in the state. Mark Vander will head up this task as the director of research and responsible gaming for the MGC.

Back in July of the year, the state’s House almost unanimously approved Bill S.269. This piece of legislation paved the way for the development of a legal sports betting platform in Massachusetts.

Since that point, the state Senate has done little to nothing to move the issue further. This lack of urgency among this group of state lawmakers presents a serious roadblock to the entire legalization effort.

The Senate’s stance has been the need for more information to prompt the new study. Meanwhile, Massachusetts continues to miss out on a lucrative tax revenue opportunity.

Vander was quoted as saying:

“An analysis in this area would be done to take a look at, obviously leveraging a previous National Council on Problem Gambling study, looking at other data that may exist in other states, looking how legalization has been rolled out in those states and combining that would allow us to have a better understanding of the likely impacts of legalization of sports wagering in Massachusetts, should it be legalized, as well as what would be kind of a guiding path towards measures to mitigate the harm.”

There are four states that share a border with Massachusetts that do offer legal sports betting. This list includes Connecticut as one of the newest states on the list. The other three are New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island.

Given the overwhelming success of legal sports betting across the US, the results of this study should bear this out. However, there appears to be more at play in this state’s Senate.

The current legislative holiday recess until January ensures that no new developments will take place. The duration of this new study could also be a factor in the legalization process.

Whatever the case may be, Massachusetts does not appear to be any closer to passing the necessary legislation at this point in time.

What makes the entire situation even more frustrating for proponents is this market’s potential. Massachusetts enjoys a robust fan base in light of its in-state pro teams.

The New England Patriots remain one of the most successful franchises in the NFL. The team plays its home games in Foxborough, MA at Gillette Stadium.

Boston is home to the NBA’s Celtics, MLB’s Red Sox and the NHL’s Bruins. Each of these iconic sports franchises has a long history of success in its own right.

Other studies on the issue have been quantitative in nature. They highlight the potential revenue of $35 million from legal sports betting in Massachusetts on an annual basis.

Written by Dave Schwab, our US Sports Betting Industry Expert. You can learn more about our author’s expertise here.

Dave Schwab

Dave Schwab has been covering the sports betting industry for the past 12 years as the main focus of his specialty marketing company for online content. This endeavor followed a previous career in the field of sales and marketing in the wholesaling sector.Most of his weekly pieces focus on the rapidly expanding legal US sports betting industry. However, he still does extensive work covering betting angles that can provide a competitive edge to avid players. Dave believes that it is always a challenge to take past results and current form to try and correctly determine a future result. Sports brings out the unpredictability in what should be a fairly predictable outcome based on the stats, facts and recent trends in a particular matchup. More from Dave Schwab