Will Massachusetts Sportsbooks Cannibalize The Mass Lottery?

Massachusetts lawmakers are looking for ways to protect the state lottery, an important revenue source, with Massachusetts’ planned sports betting bill.

Massachusetts Treasurer Deborah Goldberg says that protecting the state lottery is a top priority for her in Massachusetts’ upcoming sports betting bill.
One avenue Massachusetts’ legislators are considering to protect the state lottery with the introduction of sports betting is to expand the lottery to begin offering online lottery games.

BOSTON – With Massachusetts well on the path towards legalizing and regulating sports betting, Treasurer Deborah Goldberg told WCVB’s “On The Record” earlier this week that protecting the state lottery is a priority to her.

Protecting The Lottery A Priority

Goldberg has an impressive track record of keeping the Massachusetts lottery very profitable, even with recent gaming expansions that added casino gaming to the state’s list of gambling options. Goldberg harkened back to 2011, when lawmakers included protections for the state lottery in that year’s casino gaming expansion bill.

The state lottery has also been a crucial source of income for local governments, taking pressure off of the state government, according to Goldberg.

“I think that’s something that as the Legislature looks at what they’re going to do, I hope that they remember that the Lottery has, since the 1970s, been a very critical source of income for local communities, which takes pressure off the state budget,” Goldberg told WCVB.

Online Lottery Offerings Could Be A Solution

Goldberg is not the only Massachusetts politician concerned about the potential impact legal sports betting could have on the state lottery. Senator Eric Lesser, one of the biggest proponents of legal sports betting in Massachusetts, supports “moving towards some level of online product for the Lottery.”

“I think that’s just where the world is heading,” he said earlier this year. “Other states like Michigan, I think, have shown it can be done successfully and can be done in a way that protects our brick-and-mortar retailers and small convenience stores, which is also a big priority.”

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Jerad Paparella

Jerad has been a welcomed addition to the LegalSportsBetting.com writing team. Covering topics regarding the expansion of sports betting in the US, Jerad focuses on legislative efforts, bill signings and other methods for sports betting legalization. Finishing his education as a college baseball player, Jerad has first-hand knowledge of competitive sports, paired with years of personal sports betting as well. As a political science major at the University of Central Florida, Jerad covers the political, legal, and legislative aspects of sports gambling without any issues.