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Live! Casino and Hotel’s newest addition, Sports & Social, will open April 29, adding more gaming, a plethora of video screens for sports fans to watch games and, once Maryland lawmakers finalize it, legalized sports betting.
It is the first Sports & Social to open in Maryland. A second location will open at the Pike & Rose development in Bethesda this fall.
The Sports & Social at Live! Casino is a $12 million addition that replaces its former Center Stage performance venue in the center of its casino floor.
The nearly 14,000 square foot, 212-seat venue features a state-of-the-art audio/visual system with more than 100 linear feet of LED screens, including a 47-foot wide main screen. The casino says guests will be able to watch at least 10 games at a time.
It also has two main bars, VIP lounges, tiered sports viewing lounge chairs, casino games that include blackjack and roulette, and interactive social games, including mini-bowling and oversized foosball.
Live! Casino already has a partnership in place with FanDuel and, pending final approval, the new venue will have multiple options to place bets, including self-service kiosks and retail windows.
Maryland voters approved a ballot initiative to legalize sports betting in 2020. A bill doing so has already passed both the Maryland House and Senate and is awaiting signature by Gov. Larry Hogan. Legal betting in Maryland could begin as soon as this fall.
Sports & Social’s North Bethesda location will be about half the size of the Live! location, but will still be awash in video screens. It will also have an outdoor patio and live music.
Sports & Social is a division of Live! Casino & Hotel owner Cordish Companies. It recently opened other new locations at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Live! Casino in Pittsburgh, and Life Casino & Hotel in Philadelphia. There are others at the Atlanta Braves’ Truist Park, the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Park and the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium.