No Vote on Caesars Sportsbook Massachusetts Online License Application

• The Massachusetts Gaming Commission did not take a vote on a Caesars Sportsbook application after 7-hour meeting today
• Commissioners had too many questions remaining about application
• Commissioners also had concerns over missing information in the Massachusetts online sports betting license application

Caesars Sportsbook will have to wait at least another day for a Massachusetts online sports betting license.

Caesars Sportsbook’s application for a tethered Category 3 online sports betting license did not receive a vote today after a nearly 7-hour Massachusetts Gaming Commission meeting. The commissioners entered into an executive session to close out the meeting, but did not take a vote on the license application.

Caesars Sportsbook is tethered to Encore Boston Harbor, which has also partnered with WynnBET for its online sports betting services. WynnBET received the first tethered Category 3 online sports betting license in state history  from the commission on Tuesday.

Caesars Sportsbook Not Yet Approved for Online License

The Gaming Commission simply had too many questions regarding the Caesars Sportsbook Massachusetts license application to take a vote. Commissioner Eileen O’Brien said the application lacked several necessary pieces of information for her to feel comfortable on taking a vote, and her fellow commissioners concurred.

The majority of the license application’s information is redacted from the public, so it was difficult to determine what exactly was lacking within its pages. However, it was clear that the commissioners had concerns over the responsible gaming portion of the license criteria and the operator’s marketing strategies that possibly targeted colleges and underage audiences.

O’Brien shared major concerns over the responsible gaming section of the application where Caesars was asked to list fines and citations it had accrued through its online sports betting services. Their answers were lacking, she said, and even in some cases lacked any substantive information at all.

The gaming commissioners also shared concerns about the marketing strategies employed by Caesars Sportsbook. O’Brien said the operator’s marketing partnerships with colleges were troubling, noting that it inked a deal to become the official sportsbook operator of LSU Athletics.

Jeff Hendricks, Caesars SVP of Regulatory and Compliance, said sportsbook has tailored marketing and advertising to stadiums and events where at least 70% of the attendees were of  legal age to wager.

“We looked at the demographics where these sorts of materials would be presented. They were far north of 21…additionally, the goal was to reach out to alumni well over the legal age to wager,” he said.

Caesars Sportsbook has designed numerous controls to clearly restrict any sort of direct marketing to individuals under 21 and avoid associations with areas outside of stadiums and arenas. Hendricks assured the Gaming Commission that the operator has no intention of pursuing any such marketing relationships with Massachusetts colleges.

Commissioner Brad Hill shared his doubts with Hendricks that Caesars was able to accurately tailor its marketing in college football stadiums or college events to be sure that at least 70% of its attendees were 21 years of age or older.

Gaming Commission Running out of Time?

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is currently in a marathon session of meetings to wrap up hearings on its remaining tethered Category 3 online sports betting licenses and Category 1 retail sports betting licenses, but seem to be running out of remaining days in 2022 to complete the task at hand.

Gaming Chair Cathy Judd-Stein said days have been built into the schedule for overflow, but the hearings have been much more lengthy than anticipated so far. The Gaming Commission originally scheduled multiple hearing during a single day, but seem to only be able to run through one operator hearing a day at best.

As it stands, the Gaming Commission still needs to conclude discussions on MGM Springfield’s retail sports betting application, which had been deferred from last week, begin BetMGM’s Category 3 license application hearing, and come to a conclusion on the Caesars application it discussed today.

This is all in additional to next week’s remaining schedule, which includes a number of license hearings.

On Monday, Dec. 19, the Gaming Commission has schedule a discussion on Plainridge Park Casino’s application for a Category 1 retail sports betting license. After the discussion, the commissioners will then cover both Barstool Sportsbook and Fanatics’ application for a tethered Category 3 online sports betting license. Last week, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission deferred its vote on Plainridge Park Casino’s retail sports betting application  after questions arose regarding responsible gaming issues, the casino’s relationship with Penn Sports Interactive, and its parent company’s relationship with Barstool Sports.

If need be discussions can continue into Dec. 20.