Connecticut's first online sports betting, casino games to start Oct. 12
Mark your digital calendar: The soft launch of online sports betting and casino gaming in Connecticut will begin Tuesday, Oct. 12, at 3 p.m.
The Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes, along with the Connecticut Lottery Corporation, got the green light for the soft launch from the state Department of Consumer Protection on Friday, after it initially was postponed Thursday.
“We appreciate the hard work of our licensees and their teams, as well as the team at DCP, for their diligence in ensuring these platforms are compliant with the regulations approved by the legislature,” DCP Commissioner Michelle H. Seagull said in a news release Friday. “As long as no issues arise, we have told the licensees they may move forward with the 7-day soft launch required in the regulations. Once the soft launch is complete, online gaming will open statewide.”
Hours of operation for the online sports betting and casino gaming will be limited to 3 to 11 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, expand to noon to 11:59 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and then will run for 24 hours a day through the rest of the soft launch period, DCP said.
The DCP has approved more than 100 online casino games for the tribes and their respective casinos, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino, during the soft launch. It will not include live dealer or peer-to-peer online casino games, DCP said, and will be limited to 750 patrons.
Sports wagering directly through the lottery's online platform also will be limited to 750 patrons during the soft launch, DCP said in the release. The announcement means that Mohegan Sun partner FanDuel, Foxwoods partner DraftKings and lottery partner Rush Street Interactive may immediately begin establishing patron accounts.
It was not clear how the 750 patrons for each feature would be chosen.
Gov. Ned Lamont signed a gaming-expansion bill into law this spring authorizing the two tribes and the lottery to provide retail and online sports betting. In-person sports betting began in the state Sept. 30, when he placed ceremonial wagers at each of the tribes' casinos.
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