After the recent drop in weekly mobile sports betting handle, New York’s nine online sportsbooks again generate more wagering volume. For the week, that ended on October 16, 2022, the bookmakers reported their second-highest weekly handle since May 2022. However, as the handle increases again, revenue for the operators and state has decreased.
The Empire State opened its mobile sports betting market on January 8, 2022, and the sector is overseen by the New York State Gaming Commission. The market operates under a limited model, but this has not prevented it from becoming the top U.S. jurisdiction offering legal online sports bets, and since its launch, the market has accumulated a total handle of more than US$11 billion.
Revenue Grows, But Revenue Dips
The summer season was rather slow for sports betting in New York, but now the NFL and college football have returned and the market is once more heating up. For the week that concluded on October 16, 2022, the nine sportsbooks reported a total weekly handle of US$323 million. This is only a US$3.7 million increase on the prior week’s US$319.3 million.
But despite the slight bump in total volume wagered last week, revenue has dropped by almost US$6 million. For the October 16 week, operators had an 11.5% hold, which was less that the previous week’s 13.5%-win rate. Thanks to the start of the NFL, the weekly handle has recovered and sportsbooks have reported four straight weeks of at least US$300 million in wagers.
As the fluctuation of both handle and revenue continues, there is only one certain thing and that is FanDuel being the top sportsbook operator in the state. Once again, the bookmaker collected the largest betting volume, and for the week of October 16, 2022, it amassed more than US$126.6 million in online wagers, which translated to over US$20.2 million in revenue.
DraftKings was again closely second as the sportsbook reported an increased handle of US$114.3 million. But its revenue dropped from US$14 million to US$10.2 million for the week of October 16. Caesars Sportsbook also kept its position as third and reported a decrease in handle from US$41.9 million to US$39.9 million. Revenue also dropped from US$5.3 million to US$3.3 million.
iGaming is on the Cards
After the tremendous success of online sports betting, Empire State lawmakers are also looking to legalize online gambling in the state. Sen. Joe Addabbo is one of the lobbyists of the product and said that the introduction of online casino gambling will be his number one priority for the fiscal 2023-2024 budget. Discussion on the matter could start this December.
The legalization of online casino games in the state could prove to be prolific to the state’s coffers, found a study by VIXIO GamblingCompliance. The organization predicts that the Empire State could be bringing in around US$428 million every year. For its estimations, it used for example revenue generated in jurisdictions with legalized iGaming over a 12-month period, per adult over 18.
