ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – The leadup to legal sports betting in Ohio is a bit different than in most other states getting ready to launch for the first time.
Look at Massachusetts and Maryland, as examples. The MA sports betting bill was signed August 1 but there is no hard timeline laid out in the bill. State regulators are not under the same pressure to meet a looming drop-dead date.
Maryland has moved even slower after retail MD sportsbooks opened last year. Mobile is still in the works, almost two years after voters approved it.
Ohio on the clock
Ohio, on the other hand, had its deadline set by the enabling legislation: go live no later than Jan. 1, 2023.