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While we’re seeing some not-so-great stats for other U.S. states when it comes to wagers, the same can’t be said for Maryland sports betting success. Ever since things were made legal in the state, the numbers have been through the roof. And since November of 2022 when things were launched, things have been sensational. Matter of fact, Maryland online sports betting is recording massive numbers of late.
According to a report, Maryland posted nearly $330 million for their total sports betting handle. Not only that, though, but right around 90 percent of that total handle came from online wagers. This just goes to show how much of a success online bets are for Maryland as a whole. It’s one thing for the handle to be so high, but people are jacked up to know that so much came from mobile options.
For a while, people all over Maryland were pushing for mobile betting to be allowed. It took a little longer than expected, but as soon as things were given the green light, everyone understandably saw a spike in total wagers. Across the board, mobile options led to increased bets for the NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAAF and so much more. People love the convenience of being able to place their bets from wherever. Being on the go and still placing a wager is a huge advantage.
Shockingly, not every state has legalized mobile betting, as Maryland should be a great example of what can be done when things are allowed to move forward. In the coming months, Maryland is expected to have even higher betting numbers, as Major League Baseball will enter the heart of its campaign, while we’ll also be inching closer to the start of the 2023 regular season in the NFL. Bets across the board in Maryland will be quite high.
Running April Top 10 #SportsBetting handle by state:
1 New York $1.55B
2 New Jersey ~$834M
3 Massachusetts $579.3M
4 Pennsylvania $572.2M
5 Michigan $338.1M
6 Maryland $328.5M
7 Indiana $321.4M
8 Tennessee $318.4M
9 Louisiana $209.7M
10 Iowa $172.6M#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) May 22, 2023
NFL betting numbers were quite high for Maryland in April
As you might have been able to guess, the NFL betting numbers were quite high for Maryland in April. Though it’s still the offseason, the NFL Draft is held at the end of April and people don’t waste a second in checking the NFL betting odds to get their wagers in. For people in Maryland, they had high interest in the Washington Commanders, who used their first-round pick on Emmanuel Forbes.
Forbes, a star cornerback out of Mississippi State, was the first of many great picks for the Commanders over the weekend. In addition to looking at Washington, people in Maryland also bet on Alabama QB Bryce Young going No. 1 overall to the Carolina Panthers. That pick was expected, with a lot of people getting their wagers in via an online option. More of the same will be on the way in the coming months too.
Update: #Commanders 1st round pick, rookie CB Emmanuel Forbes, has "immediately turned heads" at practice.
One coach compared a play he made on the ball to #Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs.
“Forbes is really f—ing good.”
(via @AlbertBreer)pic.twitter.com/MnueNOWxEP
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) May 16, 2023
“Statewide handle in April totaled $328,454,397, with mobile handle accounting for 95.4% of the total at $313,472,676. Mobile wagering delivered $3,764,969 in contributions to the state during April, while retail sportsbooks contributed $99,716,” the Maryland Gaming and Lottery Commission said in a statement. “The state’s sports wagering market added a new mobile operator during April as SuperBook launched on April 13, becoming Maryland’s ninth mobile platform.”
We’re still more than three months away from the 2023 NFL season arriving, but bets are still going to be high in Maryland leading up to Week 1. The Commanders are hoping to make plenty of noise in the NFC East. Sam Howell is expected to be the starting quarterback for Ron Rivera’s team – he will surely have high expectations to play at a high level in ’23. With that said, look for people to place plenty of bets on this squad this fall and winter.
New Maryland sports betting laws will come into play soon
One thing to keep in mind moving forward is that new Maryland sports betting laws will come into play soon. This is big news for young men and women in Maryland, as one of the new regulations is that colleges and universities in the state will be banned from signing specific contracts with sportsbooks. This is major news, as we had seen a rise in sports betting from students across the board.
However, Maryland lawmakers have become increasingly concerned about that rise, as gambling among young men and women is not something they wanted to see going around campuses. Not only that, but universities and colleges were in turn making money off of kids not only signing up for the sports betting apps, but then moving forward and placing some sort of a bet. With people checking NFL, NBA betting odds and more, it’s no surprise that numbers were high for college kids.
Come July 1, the new regulations for sports betting apps for colleges and universities will come to fruition. This doesn’t mean that college kids of age won’t be able to place their sports bets, but the contracts and deals among their schools won’t be operating in the future. Plenty of officials are in favor of this major change and it’s hard to argue with them at all about this.
