Massachusetts Launches In-Person Sports Betting Ahead of Super Bowl

Mass Live reported that, following the completion of a long-lasting license approval process, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission met on December 22 and finally decided on a schedule to launch the retail sports betting market in the Bay State. Massachusetts sports fans are surely happy with the schedule as the launch date is just a few days before the Super Bowl.

Casino Operators Must do a Soft Launch First

The five commissioners decided to first do a soft launch on January 30 and scheduled the official launch date for the next day. However, the discussion on this schedule did not go too smoothly as one of the Commissioners who was supposed to go to Encore Boston Harbor for the soft launch will not be able to due to longstanding plans. Her wish to postpone the launch by one day was not granted and another commissioner was assigned to the casino.

The soft launch means that the three casinos, which are licensed to offer retail sports betting – Plainridge Park Casino, MGM Springfield, and Encore Boston Harbor, will get their sports betting products operational and then will only invite a select group of people including a member of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to try them out.

So the soft launch on January 30 means the casinos will do live testing of their sportsbook offers ahead of the official launch that will take place on January 31. It is expected that all of the proceeds from the day of the soft launch will go to charity.

Delays Are Possible as Other Steps Have to Be Completed Before the Market Launch

However, other steps in this process come before the launch itself. First, the three casinos need to obtain an operations certificate. In order to get these certificates, sports betting equipment testing company Gaming Labs International needs to do a test and verification of all software and hardware the three casinos will be using at their kiosks and sales points.

According to the schedule, Gaming Labs International needs to issue its verification before January 27 so that the Commission can process all necessary documentation on that date. Any delays in this process can result in a delay in the sports betting market launch in Massachusetts.

Just recently the Commission licensed the three casinos that will be allowed to offer retail sports betting at their venues and mobile betting through two separate apps. The approval process did not go without bumps on the road with two of the decisions being postponed due to various discrepancies in the applications.

Eventually, MGM Springfield received a license, as did Encore Boston Harbor. Things did not go as smoothly for Plainridge Park Casino. It did get a license but only a temporary one due to concerns about its connections to Barstool founder and spokesperson Dave Portnoy.