The march to mobile sports betting in Massachusetts continued Thursday morning with the approval of a new entrant - Fanatics Betting & Gaming.
After a three-day public hearing dating back to last month, Fanatics was approved unanimously by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) to operate with a Category 3 online sports betting license in the Commonwealth.
Fanatics, a privately-held company that has yet to launch its branded sports betting app, will be tethered to Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville (Category 1 retail license).
Plainridge also has partnered with Penn Interactive's Barstool Massachusetts Sportsbook for its mobile sports betting platform.
The company was granted a “preliminary” finding of suitability - conditional on approval of a company-wide responsible gaming policy before launch, along with other automatic conditions.
Based in Jacksonville, Fla., Fanatics becomes the fifth sportsbook to be approved in the Bay State (all tied to casinos).
The MGC will continue its review and discuss two more sportsbooks (untethered to any casino or parimutuel operator) with Betway on Friday and PointsBet Massachusetts Sportsbook on Tuesday, Jan. 17.
Approvals already have been given on BallySports (Jan. 6), FanDuel Massachusetts Sportsbook (Jan. 9), betr (Jan. 10) and DraftKings Sportsbook (Jan. 11). Those will be voted on Jan. 18-19.
Previously, the MGC announced that retail sports wagering at Category 1 licensees will launch in the state on Tuesday, Jan. 31. Online/mobile sports wagering, with the dawn of Massachusetts sports betting apps, is targeted to launch sometime in mid-March, hopefully before the NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament begins.
WynnBET Among Operators Already Approved
Three casinos are preparing to launch their brick-and-mortar retail locations on Jan. 31. No official time has been determined for opening that day.
Encore Boston Harbor, MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park Casino were all given the green light in December when the MGC awarded not only the three retail licenses for the casinos, but also three mobile licenses tied to each.
Those were: WynnBET MA (retail) and Caesars Sportsook (mobile), tied to Encore Boston Harbor, and BetMGM Massachusetts (retail, mobile) tied to its casino in Springfield.
Anyone over 21 years of age will be able to legally wager on Super Bowl 57, set for Feb. 12. The Jan. 31 date misses the AFC and NFC championship games that occur the previous weekend.
All along the way to the launch of sports betting in the Bay State, and well beyond, stick close to BetMassachusetts.com, your source for Massachusetts sportsbook promos.
