Pennsylvania continues its impressive growth in sports betting activity, sustaining an upward trajectory throughout the fiscal year. The latest financial report from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board affirms this trend, as it reports a new sports betting record was set in November.
Pennsylvania’s sports betting handle witnessed a surge in November, eclipsing the previous monthly record set in October. The report indicates that bettors within the Keystone State amassed a staggering $934.1 million in wagers. This rise in betting activity marks a 12.7% increase when compared to October’s figure of $829 million.
November saw a remarkable dominance of online sports wagering, constituting a staggering 94% of the total handle. Online operators facilitated $876.8 million in wagers, compared to the $57.4 million handled through retail channels.
The state is steadfast in its ambition to sustain this upward trajectory and eagerly anticipates crossing the coveted $1 billion handle threshold. October marked a significant milestone, being the first time the state exceeded the $800 million mark in handle. November marked another historic milestone, becoming the first time the state generated more than $900 million.
Pennsylvania Monthly Revenue Dips by 33.3% in November
Despite Pennsylvania achieving a record-breaking sports betting handle in November, its revenue fell compared to the height attained in October. The operators in the state posted $49.1 million in revenue as opposed to October’s $73.6 million. This decline represents a significant 75% year-over-year decrease in revenue.
Several factors contributed to the decline in revenue, with one key factor being the impact of promotional offers from the newly introduced ESPN Bet. Despite processing a considerable total of $66.8 million in bets, the operator faced a loss of $7.8 million.
In November, the sportsbook raked in $7 million in revenue but allocated a significant sum of $14.8 million to promotional credits. These credits constituted 41% of the statewide promotional credits totaling $36.3 million for the same period.
The sportsbook’s loss can also be attributed to a decline in their winning percentage, with bettors dropping the operator’s hold from 8.8% in October to a mere 5.2%.
This reduction in revenue directly impacted the state’s monthly revenue, resulting in a downturn as operators remitted $4.6 million in taxes. This marked a stark 71.9% decline from the previous month’s tax remittance of $16.4 million.
FanDuel continued its leading position, processing $384.1 million in bets, up 17% compared to October’s handle of $328.4 million. The sportsbook also recorded a gross gaming revenue of $8.4 million during this period.
Closing out the month, DraftKings secured the second spot with a total of $253.1 million, marking a slight decrease from October’s figure of $258.3 million. However, the GGR for DraftKings witnessed a more pronounced decline with a revenue of $7.9 million, down 57.8% from October’s $18.7 million.
ESPN Bet secured $66.8 million in revenue, edging out BetMGM, which recorded $54.3 million. However, BetMGM recorded a revenue of $1.7 million, as opposed to ESPN Bet’s loss.
Caesars Sportsbook reported an upswing in revenue, displaying a 20.2% increase totaling $47.6 million. This improvement reflected a remarkable revenue surge, catapulting from a loss of $336,841 in October to an impressive $998,843 in November.
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