Maryland Advocates Cutting Down on Online Sportsbook Promotion Reductions
The Maryland Lottery has proposed a change to the state's sports betting regulations, which, if implemented, would significantly impact the promotional strategies of online sportsbooks operating in the state. The proposed change is part of the "Sports Wagering Licensee Minimum Internal Control Standards" in Chapter 13 of Maryland's regulations.
Under the current regulations, after the first full fiscal year of operations, a sportsbook can offer up to 20% of its revenue in free play. However, the new proposal would limit this figure to 5%. This represents a significant reduction from the current 20%, which could potentially increase taxable revenue for the state of Maryland.
It's important to note that the proposed change does not specifically address a limit on the amount of promotional free bets that online sportsbooks can offer. Nevertheless, a higher tax rate could indirectly affect how much sportsbooks are willing or able to offer in promotional free bets, as higher taxes might reduce their profit margins and thus promotional budgets.
Despite the proposed change, online sportsbooks currently continue to offer substantial promotional incentives to customers. For instance, Fanatics Sportsbook offers $250 in bonus bets to new users after wagering $10 daily for five days.
It's also worth mentioning that a bill filed by Maryland Senator Joanne Benson aims to shut down online sports betting entirely starting January 1, 2026. If this bill passes, it would effectively end all online sports betting, and thus all associated promotional activities, but this is a separate regulatory action not tied to promotional limits per se.
In summary, the main impact of Maryland's recent regulatory changes on promotional free bets is indirect—higher taxes may constrain sportsbook operators’ promotional spending—but no specific legal limits on promotional free bets have been introduced. The new limit on free play would only apply to money generated by online sports betting in Maryland and would affect the promotional strategies of online sportsbooks in the state.
The Maryland Lottery's proposed change to sports betting regulations could potentially impact the free play promotions offered by online sportsbooks in the state, as the new limit on free play revenue might indirectly affect their promotional budgets due to increased taxes. However, currently, there are no direct legal limits imposed on the promotional free bets that online sportsbooks can offer in Maryland.
