FanDuel Maryland: Safe? Casino Bill Pulled in March 2026

FanDuel Maryland: Safe, Running Since November 2022

FanDuel Maryland has taken mobile bets since November 23, 2022, nearly two years after voters approved sports wagering by a wide margin. The 2026 question isn’t whether the sportsbook is legal — it clearly is — it’s whether an online casino is ever coming, and this spring’s answer was no.

Legal status in Maryland

Maryland voters approved sports and event wagering on November 3, 2020, when Question 2 — a referendum on Chapter 492 of the 2020 General Assembly session — passed with 67.1% support and carried all 23 counties plus Baltimore City. The General Assembly then passed the implementing law, House Bill 940, by a 122-16 House vote and a unanimous 47-0 Senate vote in April 2021; Governor Larry Hogan signed it that May. HB 940 created the Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) to award licenses, subject to suitability review by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission. Online casino play has never been part of that law. State Senator Ron Watson tried again in the 2026 session with SB 761, a ballot-referendum measure, and SB 885, the regulatory framework meant to follow it — but the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee canceled SB 761’s hearing on March 10, 2026, Watson withdrew the bill three days later, and the House companion, HB 1255, stalled in the Ways and Means Committee. The 2026 session adjourned April 13 with no iGaming law on the books.

State gambling authority: Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission, the seven-member board (appointed by the Governor with Senate consent) that licenses sports wagering operators and approves regulations within the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency.

FanDuel Maryland has taken mobile wagers since November 23, 2022 — a launch date that arrived almost exactly two years after Maryland voters settled the legal question. On November 3, 2020, Question 2 passed with 67.1% support and carried every one of the state’s 23 counties plus Baltimore City, about as lopsided a mandate as a gambling referendum gets. The gap between that vote and an actual bet going down says more about Maryland’s rollout than about FanDuel itself.

From a Landslide Vote to a Working App

Chapter 492 of the 2020 General Assembly session put sports wagering on the ballot; Question 2 is what voters saw, and it passed by a two-to-one margin. The legislature still had to write the actual rulebook, which didn’t happen until the following spring: House Bill 940 cleared the House 122-16 and the Senate 47-0 in April 2021, and Governor Larry Hogan signed it in May. That law built the Sports Wagering Application Review Commission (SWARC) specifically to award licenses — a separate body from the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission, which still runs the suitability checks behind every approval.

Two launches, not one: FanDuel’s retail sportsbook opened at Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland in Hanover in December 2021. Mobile betting didn’t follow until November 23, 2022, when FanDuel was one of seven operators cleared to go live statewide after a two-day soft launch.

Is FanDuel Safe in Maryland?

Yes, in the ways that are checkable. The mobile license runs through Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland, SWARC approved it, and the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission has ongoing audit and enforcement authority over the platform. Geolocation confirms a bettor is physically inside Maryland before a bet is accepted. None of that is unique to FanDuel — it’s the baseline every licensed Maryland operator meets — but it’s a real baseline, not a marketing claim.

No Casino, and Not for a While

Maryland law has never authorized online casino games, and 2026 was supposed to be the year that changed. State Senator Ron Watson brought back a referendum bill, SB 761, paired with a regulatory framework in SB 885. It didn’t survive March: the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee pulled SB 761’s scheduled hearing on March 10, Watson withdrew the bill three days later, and the House companion, HB 1255, stalled in the Ways and Means Committee without a vote. The session closed April 13 with the sportsbook-only status quo intact. A renewed attempt in 2027 is plausible; a working FanDuel Casino app in Maryland this year is not.

Who It Fits

Adults 21+ already comfortable with Maryland’s licensed sportsbook market get a mature, regulated option with nearly four years of continuous operation behind it. Anyone hoping for online casino slots or table games under the FanDuel name is going to keep waiting — that product doesn’t exist here yet, and the legislature just spent March proving it. Betting is entertainment, not a plan for income. 1-800-GAMBLER if it stops feeling that way.

FanDuel Maryland — Frequently Asked Questions

Is FanDuel legal in Maryland?

Yes. Maryland voters approved sports wagering under Question 2 on November 3, 2020, with 67.1% support, and the General Assembly’s implementing law, House Bill 940, passed 122-16 in the House and 47-0 in the Senate in 2021. FanDuel has held a Maryland mobile license since the Sports Wagering Application Review Commission approved it in November 2022.

Is FanDuel safe to use in Maryland?

Yes. It operates under a license tied to Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland in Hanover, subject to suitability review by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission, with geolocation confirming the bettor is physically in the state. That is a materially different safety profile from an unregulated offshore site — there’s a named state regulator with audit and enforcement power behind the app.

When did FanDuel launch in Maryland?

Retail betting opened first, with FanDuel’s sportsbook going live at Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland in December 2021. Mobile betting followed almost a year later: FanDuel was one of seven operators approved to go live statewide on November 23, 2022, after a soft launch two days earlier.

Does FanDuel have an online casino in Maryland?

No, and it won’t for a while. Maryland has never authorized online casino play, and the latest attempt to change that — Senator Ron Watson’s SB 761 ballot-referendum bill and its companion regulatory bill, SB 885 — died in March 2026 when the Senate committee canceled SB 761’s hearing and Watson withdrew it. The House version, HB 1255, stalled in committee the same month. The earliest a renewed push could resurface is the 2027 session, and any legalization would still require a statewide vote.

Is FanDuel legit in Maryland, or just licensed on paper?

Legit in practice, not just on paper. FanDuel has operated continuously in Maryland since its November 2022 mobile launch, is one of the state’s longest-running licensed mobile operators, and answers to the same Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission that licenses the state’s retail casinos.