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In-person sports betting begins Thursday in Connecticut, giving New Englanders another option for placing legal wagers on Tom Brady’s long-anticipated return to Foxboro on Sunday.
As the Massachusetts Senate considers the legalization of sports betting again this session, the activity has now been approved in every state bordering Massachusetts besides Vermont.
The Massachusetts House approved a sports betting bill this summer, but the Senate, where the bill has not drawn outright opposition, has consistently shown less interest in the idea and has the House bill under the review of its Ways and Means Committee.
Holding out: Massachusetts is one of the last states in New England without sports betting. For now.
Connecticut’s rollout begins Thursday with in-person betting at temporary sportsbooks at Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino, both in the eastern part of the state and relatively accessible from Massachusetts by interstates 395 and 95.
Mohegan Sun said adults 21 and older can place bets. Mobile and online wagering for the Nutmeg State remains a week away, according to The Day newspaper.
The launch of retail betting comes early in the NFL season and coincides with Brady’s first game against the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick.
Patriots loyalists, Brady fans and everyone in between can also travel to Rhode Island or New Hampshire to plunk down cash on Sunday night’s game.
Rolling the dice: Massachusetts state representatives approve sports betting
Rhode Island’s sports betting website featured a series of Brady/Rob Gronkowski prop bets Thursday morning and listed Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers as 7-point favorites.
When the Massachusetts House nearly unanimously approved its sports betting bill in July, state Rep. Jerald Parisella pointed out the neighboring states that offer and profit from the activity while illicit gambling still attracts bettors here.
“We’re surrounded,” Parisella, who chairs the Committee on Economic Development, said.
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