GAMING TODAY: Fanatics to Open Retail Sportsbook Adjacent to Columbus Blue Jackets’ Nationwide Arena

Retail sportsbooks are becoming the must-have amenity for professional sports franchises in Ohio. The Columbus Blue Jackets hopped on the trend Tuesday, as Fanatics Betting and Gaming, the online and retail sports betting company within the global digital sports platform, announced plans for one adjacent Nationwide Arena.

Unlike retail sportsbooks located within Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. and the Footprint Center in Phoenix, the Fanatics shop in the Arena District will set up nearby the venue as a fan experience, as has become the industry norm.

It’s scheduled to open in late August, on a similar timetable as another Fanatics retail spot in Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Guardians.

According to a Fanatics release, the sportsbook in Columbus will be located at 401 North Front Street. The main entrance will be located “in the alleyway immediately north of the entrances to Buca di Beppo and Starbucks.”