Maryland Goes Live With Legal Retail Sports Betting

Dave Schwab Casino Expert

3 minute read

Maryland became the latest state to go live with legal sports betting. Governor Larry Hogan placed the first legal bet on Thursday, Dec. 9 at the new sportsbook in MGM National Harbor outside of Washington DC.

The state is still working through the licensing process for mobile sportsbook operators. However, retail sports betting at three different Maryland casinos is underway. Horseshoe Casino Baltimore and Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland held their ribbon-cutting ceremonies on Friday, Dec. 10.

One of the regulatory issues that came up during the public comment phase was the maximum sports bet that could be placed. US-based operators such as FanDuel and DraftKings proposed no set limit.

At the other end of the spectrum, problem gambling experts wanted to set the limit at $100,000 for any one sporting event. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency settled on $5 million as the maximum bet that could be placed.

John Martin is that agency’s director. He commented that this is “an issue that we looked at from all sides.” Maximum bet limits was part of a document containing 351 pages of public comments.

As Horseshoe’s senior vice president and general manager, Randy Conroy was excited to get his casino’s sportsbook up and running. He is looking to capitalize on a strategic marketing deal with the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens as an official gaming partner.

The property is also close to the Ravens’ home field at M&T Bank Stadium as another big draw. Baltimore is expected to qualify for the NFL playoffs this season as a boost to this partnership.

Governor Hogan also made an appearance at Live! Casino in Hanover. This gaming property formed a business alliance with FanDuel as its sportsbook operating partner. Former Ravens’ standout Ed Reed was scheduled to place the first legal bet at that sportsbook.

Live! Casino just completed an on-site renovation to create sports-themed bars and restaurants where patrons can bet on the games. Casino president Rob Norton stated, “For us, the big benefit is getting people in the building.”

Maryland has two other casino locations that are in the process of opening a retail book. However, Hollywood Casino Perryville and Ocean Downs in Worcester did not release a time table for their launch of legal sports betting.

Interestingly enough, a six casino location in Rocky Gap in the western part of the state does not have immediate plans to offer legal sports betting.

For now, the three main Maryland casinos are the only game in town. Eventually, legal sports betting will be available statewide through mobile sportsbook apps. Further retail expansion includes horse racing tracks and sports venues. The MLB’s Baltimore Orioles play at Camden Yards.

The state tax on sports betting revenue has been set at 15%. Most of the tax money collected will be used to support public schools. When fully operational, volume estimates for annual sports betting revenue in Maryland have been set at $100 million.

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