Massachusetts Sports Betting to Add Gambling Limits?

Massachusetts sports betting regulators have announced their intention to continue their push to implement wagering limits this fall. And they expect various Massachusetts online sportsbooks to join them.

During a recent meeting, officials from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission said they would hold a special gathering where they will exclusively discuss whether to institute sports betting limits. Though no exact date is set, the forum is expected to happen no later than October.

This is not the first time The Bay State has discussed individual wagering limits. Officials last approached the subject back in May. Those conversations ultimately went nowhere for various reasons. Some blame the absence of Massachusetts online sportsbooks from the panel. (More on this shortly.)

Regardless of what happened, many assumed the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) would revisit the in due time. And apparently, that time is now.

Will the meeting end with individual limits being placed on sports betting in Massachusetts? The answer is, as usual, complicated.

Will Online Operators Attend Meeting on Massachusetts Sports Betting Limits?

When the MGC last talked about betting limits, most online sportsbooks in the United States opted not to attend. Bally’s was the only online Massachusetts sportsbook to show up. While attendance was officially optional, the MGC expressed disappointment that just one operator showed up. A similar dilemma seems to be taking shape this time around, too.

Jordan Maynard, the interim chair of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, recently made it sound like this meeting’s attendance was mandatory. “I expect every operator will engage in this conversation with us,” he said, per CDC Gaming. “Not hope–expect.”

This is a pretty definitive statement wrapped in ambiguously cordial wordering. From the look of things, it seems that attendance for Massachusetts sports betting operators yet again won’t be mandatory, but that the MGC is demanding they come anyway.

Whether The Bay State’s sportsbooks show up in the not-yet-scheduled meeting remains to be seen. But this debate raises an interesting question: Why don’t online sportsbooks in Massachusetts want to attend the meeting?

Here’s Why Massachusetts Sportsbooks May Not Attend MGC’s Special Meeting

Gambling limits are bad for sportsbooks. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. It caps how much money they can make on any one wager. In fact, DraftKings has said on record that they limit less than 1 percent of their bettors, per Legal Sports Report.

So, revenue is clearly one of the forces driving the stance of Massachusetts online sportsbooks. However, officials from certain companies have said they are willing to have a discussion. They just don’t want it to be public. Here’s Legal Sports Report’s Mike Mazzeo with more:

“Operators told the Massachusetts Gaming Commission they would appear at a future discussion, but only if it was operators-only. The MGC, however, wants to hear from bettors and responsible gambling advocates on the topic as well…At the time they collectively bailed, operators cited complexities in discussing a thorny issue in a public forum, along with the fact that participants representing the bettor perspective were professionals (a pair of whom representing the new group American Bettors Voice). The MGC stated that the possible format of a public meeting would be the operators going first, followed by the bettors and responsible gambling advocates. Not all questions will be known to the operators, though many were posed prior to their roundtable no-show. Maynard said that ‘no one is going to be abused in a commission meeting.’”

Other outlets have confirmed Maynard’s final comments. The MGC has reiterated to everyone who’s inquired that the meeting will not be contentious, and that they don’t, per se, intend to have sportsbooks on the defense.

Perhaps that assuages any concerns by online sportsbooks in the USA. We would be surprised if it did. Not knowing the questions they’re about to face, in particular, seems like a non-starter.

It Could Be a While Before This Issue is Settled

Though Maynard has hinted that he expects formal intentions or policies to come out of this meeting, it’d be wise to remain skeptical. More information is needed from both sides on the matter.

For example, the MGC is sure to want information and data on what it takes for online sportsbooks to limit betting, and how many users currently fall under that umbrella. Some Massachusetts sports betting officials have also expressed a desire to get more intel on international sports betting limits.

On the flip side, sportsbooks launched in Massachusetts will likely want the same level of information from the MGC on the value of betting limits. To that end, this might be why a meeting has yet to be scheduled. Both sides might still need to put their ducks in a row.

Either way, we’d be wary of any official legislation coming out of any gathering—with or without the sportsbooks. Think about it. The mere process of discussing the introduction of Massachusetts sports betting limits has been anything but smooth. Why would the actual debate unfold any differently?

To be sure, if nothing happens by or in October, this matter won’t just go away. The MGC has redoubled their focus on regulatory efforts over the last year or so. Most recently, they talked about adding the Massachusetts sports betting market to a nation-wide self-exclusion list. The MGC has also pushed to raise the Massachusetts sports betting tax, although the Senate voted against it.

So no matter what happens over the next couple months, the push for sports betting limits in Massachusetts seems like it’s probably here to stay.

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