Welcome to the Gaming Today sports betting revenue tracker. We keep an eye on estimated betting handle and revenue for sports gaming operators in the top United States locations. With new sports betting markets launching this year, we expect 2022 to be sports betting’s most profitable year.
With New York legalizing online sports betting at the beginning of 2022, we’ve seen the Empire State dominate amongst other locations. It is the largest market in mobile sports betting in terms of handle and revenue. In the first month of the year, New York nearly hit $1.7 billion in betting handle alone. Previously, New Jersey was the largest market in the United States.
Iowa allowed bettors to register for mobile sports betting accounts online after the in-person registration requirement ended in January 2021, pushing the state into the top tier of monthly handle. In the first month of online registration, the state’s handle grew by nearly 43% compared to the prior month. It’s a testament to how important ease of use is for customer acquisition.
The Gaming Today revenue tracker will be updated frequently to provide a consistent look at the betting market. Arizona is one of the top markets in the nation, but data comes out later than most dates. So, it has its own section at the bottom of the page. Some amounts may differ from the state reports since the last time we pulled revenue figures numbers.
Total and Mobile Betting Handle – December 2022
Top State: New York – $1,632,469,010
The most recent batch of states to update their sports betting figures are New York, Indiana, and Iowa. New York generated over $1.6 billion in handle, and the state made $72.9 million in tax revenue. New Jersey and Pennsylvania weren’t close. New Jersey sportsbooks generated just under $1 billion in handle, and Pennsylvania sportsbooks saw $754 million in handle.
All three states are in the midst of football and basketball season. These figures won’t dip until February, when betting activity will decrease after the Super Bowl. Handle will increase again during March Madness.
Total And Mobile Betting Handle – November 2022
In most markets, more than 70% of sports betting is done online. For markets where mobile is heavily favored, like New York and New Jersey, over 90% of betting is done online.
Virginia is one of the only states that doesn’t publish separate mobile and retail sports betting figures. Virginia opened its first retail sportsbook in July 2022, but its retail casino reports don’t list sportsbook handle separately.
Nevada is the other special case on this list. Most of Nevada’s gambling revenue comes from its casinos and entertainment. So, sports betting is a small part of Nevada’s gambling offerings.
Illinois was the only market outside of the northeast to make more than $1 billion in sportsbook handle. It’s one of the midwest’s sports betting hotspots. When Ohio sports betting goes live, it could become the next billion-dollar sports betting market in the United States.
Sports Betting Revenue – December 2022
Top State: New York – $142,969,451
Unsurprisingly, New York continues to lead the way in sports betting revenue. New York sportsbooks saw over $140 million in revenue. New Jersey sportsbook revenue was just under $88 million. Pennsylvania sports betting revenue crept over $54.6 million.
This is the taxable revenue in each state’s market. So, this is what’s left over after sportsbooks pay winnings and deduct promotional credits. This is unlikely to be the revenue figure sports betting proponents advertise when they’re pushing for sports betting legalization. Handle and tax revenue are both more attractive figures for the skim-reading public.
Sports Betting Revenue – November 2022
Of the states on this list, Virginia is the only one that doesn’t publish mobile sports betting data. Since so much sports betting activity is online anyway, online sports betting figures are a fair representation of sports betting revenue in all but a few states anyway.
Nevada sportsbooks also have additional financial security in the casinos. If sportsbooks have a bad weekend where bettors win more than the sportsbooks, then a sportsbook on its own has to make up for it alone the next week. As part of a casino, a sportsbook’s performance doesn’t matter as much. Casino sportsbooks benefit from a larger pool of cash to bring it through bad weekends.
(Professional sportsbooks have bad weekends by extraordinary chance. There’s a reason the last major headline about sportsbook losses pointed out a new low in 30 years rather than 30 days.)
Sports Betting State Tax Revenue – December 2022
Top State: New York – $72,914,420
New York leads in sports betting tax revenue because of its high handle and high tax rate.
New York’s 51% tax rate brings in a large amount of money from an already large pool of taxable revenue. New York beat its annual tax revenue goal for sports betting in six months, so its growth is as high as its revenue levels.
New York’s December 2022 tax revenue was just under $73 million. The next closest state to New York’s tax revenue level is Pennsylvania, which brought in just under $20 million. New York’s tax policy continues to show other states how to maximize sports betting tax revenue. One factor is a high tax rate, but recent moves to limit promotional credit write-offs could further increase sports betting tax revenue.
Sports Betting State Tax Revenue* – November 2022
*Based on available information. Some states don’t report taxable mobile sports betting revenue.
Among the November states, Illinois is the leading state for sports betting tax revenue. Its 15% tax on mobile betting is much lower than New York, but its lead among the November states shows how popular sports betting has become in Illinois.
Nevada’s tax revenue in this graph is an estimate based on its 6.75% tax rate. 6.75% of its $56.9 million in sports betting revenue would bring in almost $3.8 million for the state. Again, this shows how small a part sports betting plays in the gambling and entertainment center of Las Vegas compared to the casinos and entertainment options.
Nevada’s figures also show how in-person registration reduces online sports betting activity and sports betting tax revenue. (Iowa learned this lesson when it eliminated its in-person registration requirement, too.)
Arizona Sports Betting Data – October 2022
| Handle | $618,570,296.06 |
| Gross Revenue | $29,708,304.13 |
| Tax Revenue | $2,963,715.79 |
Arizona reports its sports betting figures later than the other major sports betting states. However, it’s also a thriving southwestern market that could become an example of a southern state that embraced sports betting without serious consequences.
(Unlike other southern states, Arizona spends about $2 million per year on problem gambling services.)
Arizona sportsbooks also had a 4.8% hold in October, showing how little sports betting handle becomes taxable revenue. Arizona sportsbooks also paid just under $3 million in state taxes after bettors wagered $618 million in handle.
Sports betting may be popular, but the differences between handle, sportsbook revenue, and tax revenue show how easily these numbers can be manipulated to frame the industry in different ways.
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