Wynn urges Massachusetts to reject iGaming as DraftKings pushes legalization

Massachusetts lawmakers are weighing whether to authorize online casino gambling after the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies took testimony last week that indicated a sharp divide between brick-and-mortar operators and online advocates.

Wynn Resorts, through its Encore Boston Harbor property, urged the Legislature to say no. Eileen McAnney, executive director of government relations for Encore Boston Harbor, warned that legal iGaming would spur addiction and siphon business from resort properties, jeopardizing Encore’s roughly 3,000 jobs and the approximately $15 million in monthly gaming taxes it pays the state.

“The rationale that internet casino gambling will increase state revenues does not factor in the significant cannibalization of brick-and-mortar gaming taxes, lost hotel, restaurant, and entertainment tax revenues, lost tax revenues stemming from significant job losses, lost tax revenue from reductions in casino purchases from small businesses and suppliers, and the social costs related to increased problem gambling, bankruptcies, welfare, health care costs, homelessness, domestic violence and family seperation, criminal justice impacts, and more,” McAnney declared.

Encore leads the state’s casino market, averaging about $60 million a month in gross gaming revenue over the last year. MGM Springfield has averaged roughly $20 million, while Plainridge Park’s slots have averaged about $15 million.

Wynn no longer operates online casinos or mobile sportsbooks despite previous WynnBet operations in several states, a posture that aligns it with Las Vegas Sands and contrasts with MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment. Only seven states currently allow iGaming: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.

Proponents told lawmakers that prohibition has not kept online play out of Massachusetts. John Pappas of the iDevelopment & Economic Association said offshore platforms already target residents.

 “Let’s be clear, iGaming is happening today in the commonwealth. A recent report with one of our member companies, GeoComply, found that residents are actively gambling with illegal online platforms. According to the data, residents conduct more than 250K monthly searches for online casino and poker content, and that’s resulted in 1.2 million visits to illegal online casino sites,” Pappas said.

“These casinos are aggressively advertising to consumers, who don’t even recognize that they’re engaging with an illegal gambling platform,” he continued.

DraftKings, headquartered in Boston, said regulation would channel consumers to monitored products and create tax revenue. Rebecca London, senior government affairs manager for DraftKings, told lawmakers the company employs more than 1,300 people in Massachusetts and estimated that Representative David Muradian’s bill could deliver $170 million to $200 million a year in taxes.

London said Senator Paul Feeney’s version could reach $275 million due to a different tax model and its treatment of online-only operators. She also cited consumer protections, including support for “problem gamblers.”

Massachusetts expanded gambling in stages, authorizing resort casinos in 2011, sports betting in 2022, and allowing the Lottery to go online in 2024. In September, casinos generated $27 million in taxes, and sports betting added about $10 million, with DraftKings contributing roughly half of the latter.