When Will BetFanatics Launch in Maryland?

When Maryland sports betting goes live on Wednesday, BetFanatics will not be one of the sportsbooks available to bettors at launch. That's because Fanatics' long-anticipated sportsbook offering is not yet available for users to download.

However, there's good news if you're a Maryland bettor looking forward to signing up with BetFanatics — the brand already has a license to operate in the Old Line State. The Maryland Sports Wagering Application Review Commission this week awarded 10 sportsbook licenses, and BetFanatics was one of them.

BetFanatics Maryland Launch Set for January 2023

A few of the 10 sportsbooks will not immediately launch when legal online sports betting goes live next week. BetFanatics is among those expected to wait until 2023 to launch.

Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin in October said BetFanatics will launch in January in time for the 2023 NFL playoffs. BetFanatics is also expected to be available in Ohio when legal sports betting goes live there on New Year's Day. It is not yet known if the new sportsbook will launch in Maryland at the turn of the New Year as well since the operator has until mid-January to launch before the NFL playoffs begin.

Rubin has said that BetFanatics will be live in about 15-20 states by the 2023 NFL season.

The books that will be live in Maryland on the first day of legal sports betting like BetMGM, Caesars, FanDuel, and DraftKings have already started pre-registration offers for bettors to get a head start on signing up before the official launch date. You can check out some of these pre-registration offers here:

Fanatics Partnerships in Maryland

In preparation for their entrance into the sports betting market, Fanatics secured two important partnerships in Maryland:

• Fanatics began their NIL  jersey program to support the Maryland Terrapins football team.
• The Washington Commanders and Fanatics announced a long-rumored partnership this week. The Commanders will operate a Fanatics sportsbook at FedExField at some point in 2023 when their lounge opens. Earlier this year, Fanatics opened a clothing store at FedExField at the start of the 2022 NFL season.

Background on Fanatics

Fanatics, Inc. is a licensed sportswear retailer that was founded in Jacksonville, Florida in 1995. It originally began as  Football Fanatics before CEO Micael Rubin acquired the company and changed its name in 2011. It is now the largest sports-only licensed retailer in the world

Historically, Fanatics is the leading sportswear company on the planet with big plans for 2023 and beyond. One of those big initiatives is Fanatics' sportsbook offering, BetFanatics.

In March, Fanatics raised $1.5 billion at a $27 billion valuation. That came about a year after the company acquired Topps. Fanatics has also ventured into the NFT and iGaming spaces, alongside its traditional e-commerce enterprise.