Over $3-million goes to the state for Blueprint for Maryland.
Baltimore, Md (KM) It’s the largest amount of money taken in since sports wagering began in the state last year. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Agency reports that the 13 retail and 12 mobile sportsbooks brought in a total of $550,716,329 in November. That money comes from bets placed on sporting events by individual players. . Seth Elkin, the Marketing Director for Maryland Lottery and Gaming, says that surpasses the $497,121,656 taken in during December, 2022, when sports wagering was getting underway in the state.
“The popularity of mobile wagering, I think, has a lot of to do with just the way people wager. And you’re able to monitor what’s going on in the game, and sometimes there will be wagers available to you while the game is in progress,” Elkin says.
He says 96.8% of the total taken in came from individuals placing bets though their mobile phones or home computers. That amounts to $533,276,787. But that can still benefit retail outlets like Long Shots in Frederick, where people can also place bets on sporting events. “Long Shots also has a partner for a mobile app as well. They are in that market as well,” says Elkin.
From the sportsbook totaling more than $550-million in November, Elkin says $3,199,529 of that amount was turned over to the state. Those funds will be used to pay for the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, an education improvement program. “So far this fiscal year—the fiscal year runs from July through June–so since July of 2023, it’s about $18.1-million in contributions to the Blueprint from sports wagering,” he says.
And that amount of money for the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future and other state programs is expected to increase. “The original projections that we had about how much sports wagering would contribute to the state were about $25- to $30-million a year,” Elkin says. “We hit that $25-million mark for fiscal year 2023 which ended June 30th of this year. And that’s without things being fully operational for the full fiscal year.”
He says he amount for the state from sportsbooks is expected to continue rising. “We’re thinking that by the time fiscal year ’24 ends on June 30th of 2024, we’re probably looking at more like $40- to $45-million in contributions to the state for the year rather than that 24 {million dollars} to 30 {million dollars} that we initially projected,” he said. “So things are going well.”
Maryland Lottery and Gaming reminds players to play responsibly, set a limit and keep to that limit. If you have a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit mdgamblinghelp.org.
By Kevin McManus