Nevada Reaches Record Sportsbook Handle in January

Nevada’s sports bettors were on top of their game in January, which as a consequence, saw revenues drop. However, the total amount of wagered money leaped to new heights as the handle reached $497 million!

The Nevada Gaming Control Board publicly released figures that show a sports betting revenue for the first month of the year being $14.7 million, which is a 41.7% annual decline.

However, the total handle increased 18.8%, from last January’s $418.6 million.

Football Leading the Way

The most popular sport with punters was American football…

…where winnings were up 5.52% year-on-year (win percentage was 4.13%) to $7.78 million from a total wagered amount of $188.26 million (last year’s handle was $179.61 million).

January ended a very successful three-month period during which $57.78 million in revenue was generated by operators from football betting. That’s a 40.13% income jump on an annual level, as well as a 6.42% win percent. NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl happened during this time frame.

Basketball, however, was a whole different story:

This sport saw wins dwindle 62% to only $5.85 million, mostly due to the fact that there were no big surprises during the entire month and favorites were winning. Basketball saw a bigger handle than football – $256.71 million, which is a 27.2% rise from last year.

Overall Gambling in Slight Decline

As overall gambling goes in all of Nevada, the revenue for the first month of the year stood at $984.5 million – a 3% drop compared to last year’s January.

blackjack, whose 15.1% fall meant profits of $90.2 million.

Other Records of Infamous Nature

Last week, the Nevada Gaming Commission decided on a record-high $20 million fine against Wynn Resorts Ltd for failing to pursue justice in a case of their former CEO, Steve Wynn’s, sexual misconducts.

A scandal that shook the company to its foundations resulted in Wynn’s resignation a year ago and the failure to conduct a proper investigation, or a lack of will to do so, ended in a financial penalty without comparison – the previous highest fine ever to be paid to a Nevada regulator was $5.5 fine against CG Technology.

Sports Betting in 2018 Was irable

And that Nevada’s sports betting market remains a formidable force in spite of all the new markets popping up across the USA…

…was proven by figures released by the Control Board that reveal that the total handle for 2018 was an astonishing $5.01 billion! The overall win grew to $301 million.

Source:

“Nevada sportsbook handle hits new heights in January”, igamingbusiness.com, March 1, 2019.