The XL Center in Hartford, a multi-purpose arena & convention center located in downtown Hartford, Connecticut, has announced that it is all set to open its sportsbook next month as the 2023 NFL regular season kicks off.

The retail sports betting location at the XL Center in Hartford will be opened at 5:30 p.m. on September 18, 2023. The upcoming sportsbook will be powered by the Connecticut Lottery Corporation (CT Lottery), which is the only official lottery in the state. It may also be noted here that the arena in question hosts UConn basketball for sports betting.

Connecticut is one of the states in the U.S. that are gradually expanding gambling. In early 2021, state lawmakers and Democratic Governor Ned Lamont signed new Class III gaming compacts with two federally recognized tribes of the state, viz. the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Mohegan Tribe. The new gaming compacts signed by the governor provided the tribes with exclusive rights to operate online casinos, sports betting etc.

Under the terms of the updated gaming compacts, operators of the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods have received new privileges that mark the state’s first major expansion of commercial gambling since the state lottery was launched in 1971. While the tribes gained iGaming exclusivity, the Connecticut Lottery pocketed retail and online sports betting rights.

The Connecticut Lottery is allowed one online sportsbook platform and a maximum of fifteen retail sports betting locations. Thus far, the state lottery has partnered with nine businesses to offer retail sports betting services, including Arooga’s Grille House & Sports Bar in Shelton, Bobby V in Stamford, Windsor Locks in New Haven, and Winners’ locations in Hartford, Milford and Waterbury.

Next month, the state lottery’s on-site XL Center sportsbook will provide patrons one more reason to visit the venue. The new sportsbook will be accessible via an entrance along Church and Ann Uccello streets. To be more specific, non-ticketholders will also be able to access the sports betting area during the ticketed events.

The opening of the new sportsbook on 18th of September coincides with two NFL Monday Night Football games. Christopher Davis, a spokesperson for the Connecticut Lottery, said, “Fans will be able to come in and check out both games that night and check out the new facility.”

Opened in 1975, the multi-purpose indoor arena XL Center in downtown Hartford hosts court for the University of Connecticut men’s as well as women’s basketball teams. Additionally, it hosts the professional ice hockey team Hartford Wolf Pack’s games.