Massachusetts has joined the club as another state looking toward sports betting to get them out of the financial hole created by COVID-19. They have recently been discussing legislation in the state.
The Governor of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker, has voiced his support for sports gambling.
“We wanted to give Massachusetts the ability to have people play here rather than playing elsewhere,” Baker said. “And I absolutely believe that, in addition to sort of the cross-border competition issues that would be addressed by doing something here in Massachusetts, it would certainly generate revenue and it would be something that a lot of people would be interested in here at home as opposed to doing across the border.”
There is no doubt that other states in the northeast are taking advantage of sports betting during rough financial times. A state’s inability to pass legislation allows bettors to take their business elsewhere, or in the illegal market.
Other states with mobile betting still have financial issues, but the whole is a significant amount less.
Sports in Boston
Sports have been absent for some time because of the suspension caused by the coronavirus. But Thursday was a big day with the MLB making its return.
The NBA and NHL are soon to follow, and football is just around the corner. Boston is a great sports city that shows plenty of support for their clubs.
A Red Sox executive even voiced his opinion about allowing sports betting in the state. He referred to it as “low-hanging fruit” for the state to make additional revenue.
“To be sure, sports betting won’t fix the state’s massive budget deficit, but to use baseball terms, while it may not be a grand slam, it’s a solid single,” David Friedman, senior vice president of legal and government affairs for the Red Sox said.
The Patriots may have lost their long-time quarterback in Tom Brady, but the coach, Bill Belichick, is still there. They added Cam Newton, who could be an entertaining replacement under center.
There are fewer worries about the integrity of the game because of the number of ways to track bets. It is harder than ever to orchestrate any wrongdoing or point-shaving in sports.
“And the leagues are laying down some pretty heavy rules associated with anybody who engages in any way with any of that stuff, which I think will be very helpful,” Friedman said.
Re-Opening in Massachusetts
Massachusetts is among many other states that are trying to slowly re-open their businesses. Casinos were recently allowed to open back up under new guidelines.
They have this structure in place with casinos for a smooth move to mobile betting. More and more states are seeing the benefits of passing gambling legislation.
Even when the state is back open, the financial effect will be there for years to come. Sports betting is coming to stay, and Massachusetts may start to fall behind the curve if they don’t act fast.