Massachusetts residents might someday be able to belly up to their neighborhood bar to bet on the game or while waiting for dinner at the local restaurant. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is considering allowing retail locations to operate sports wagering kiosks.

It appears, however, that the odds might be against such an expansion of the gaming laws, at least for now.

State House News Service reports, “A report prepared for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission concluded there is essentially no economic benefit to allowing people to bet on sports at kiosks in retail locations like restaurants and bars, and that the financial and societal costs for such an expansion could be significant.”

The complete 116-page Massachusetts Sports Wagering Kiosk Feasibility Study, conducted by the New Jersey-based Spectrum Gaming Group in collaboration with the Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health, is available online.

The report finds that “Although kiosks could provide modest economic benefits to some small businesses, given the de minimis (too trivial or minor to merit consideration) results in Ohio (an average of less than $225 in direct kiosk revenue per retailer annually) it is uncertain whether kiosk program participants in Massachusetts – hosts, vendors, and the Commonwealth – would experience the economic benefit needed to justify the costs and efforts that we believe would be required to support such a program and ensure its commercial viability.”

The report could be enough to discourage the Commonwealth from proceeding with the sports betting kiosks but you never know, the Bay State has gaming fever.

Betting on dog and horse races was made legal in Massachusetts in 1934. Public and private lotteries were legal until outlawed in 1883. The modern lottery was established in 1971. Charitable gaming has been allowed with the proper permits since 1932.

The Expanded Gaming Act of 2011, cleared the way for casino gaming in Massachusetts, and in 2022, state lawmakers approved sports betting.

While the odds seem long against kiosk sports betting right now, don’t bet against it just yet.