New York’s $2 Billion October; California Tribes Talking Highlight Latest Sports Betting News
These are the biggest recent sports betting news stories across the industry. New York set the record for most wagers in a single month in October. Maryland also saw a personal best in terms of tax revenue for October. California, yet to join the industry, is seeing conflict amongst tribes about the current sports betting legislative push.
Below, we will break down all the recent sports betting news.
New York, New York: $2 Billion In Wagers For October
The New York Gaming Commission released the October 2023 sports betting report. It revealed the single highest sports betting month ever in the post-PASPA era. New York became the first market for $2 billion in wagers.
NY online sportsbooks saw $166.3 million in sports betting revenue on an 8.3% hold rate. The state collected $84.8 million in tax revenue from the 51% tax rate. This is the second-highest revenue count in NY, with the initial record being set just in September 2023 with $166.8 million.
The top earners for October were FanDuel and DraftKings, with FanDuel reclaiming its spot as the biggest sportsbook in the Empire State. FanDuel saw $891.9 million of the total wagers in October. This is the highest single-month handle for any FanDuel nationwide. The $891.9 million also represents 44% of the entire betting market. Wagers from FanDuel contributed $83.1 million in revenue off the 9.3% hold rate.
Meanwhile, DraftKings saw its second-highest wagering month in NY with $652.3 million. DK saw a $59.3 million in revenue with a 9.1% hold rate.
Maryland Sets Revenue Record
Sportsbooks in Maryland saw $483,147,391 million in wagers for October. This is the second most wagers in a single month in Maryland history, only trailing the $497,121,656 from December 2022.
The Maryland Lottery reported that operators saw the most revenue since launch with $58,701,910 off 12.1% hold rate. This led to $5,812,245 in taxes, also the most since launch.
Maryland Sports Betting Breakdown October 2023
Handle (Amount players wagered, including free promotional wagers)
Retail: $19,644,968 (includes $9,252 in free promotional wagers)
Mobile: $463,502,423 (includes $19,368,480 in free promotional wagers)
Combined: $483,147,391
Prizes (Winnings paid to players)
Retail: $17,670,331
Mobile: $406,775,150
Combined: $424,445,481
Hold (Handle minus prizes paid)
Retail: $1,974,636 (10.1%)
Mobile: $56,727,273 (12.2%)
Combined: $58,701,910 (12.1%)
Taxable Win (Amount remaining after deducting prizes, promotional wagers, and other amounts)
Retail: $2,071,445
Mobile: $36,676,856
Combined: $38,748,301
Sports Wagering Tax (15% of the Taxable Win)
Retail: $310,717
Mobile: $5,501,528
Combined: $5,812,245
Since the inception of Maryland’s sports wagering program in December 2021:
Cumulative contribution to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Fund: $43,053,680
Cumulative expired prizes contributed to the Problem Gambling Fund: $2,651,628
Maryland has continued to be a growing market. This NFL and college football season has truly helped push the market to the highest of heights in terms of revenue. A large contributor has been the success of the Baltimore Ravens and local teams collegiate teams like the University of Maryland.
“People love to bet on football, and that is certainly reflected in the handle this time of year,” said John Martin, Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director, in a release. “The Ravens’ success and college football are contributing factors, and there is a convergence of the seasons in October, with the baseball playoffs and World Series and the start of hockey and basketball. From an overall perspective, the results show that a robust market has taken shape here in Maryland and is making a steady contribution to the state’s education programs.”
California Tribes Not Seeing Eye To Eye On Sports Betting Initiatives
In October, California legislators saw two measures pushed for sports betting in the Golden States. The two initiatives are 23-0031 and 23-0030 which would bring online and retail sports betting to locals. The measures are tribal friendly; however, tribal members are opposed.
Recently, those opposed expressed their concerns with how the measures are being handed. On the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) weekly webinar hosted by Victor Rocha, tribal leaders voiced their issues. Chairman of the California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) James Siva was among those present.
“The timing of this is what confuses me the most. Because we’ve been having discussions about sports betting all year,” said Siva. “CNIGA put together a special meeting to talk about sports betting going back to February. So, we’ve never really stopped talking about sports betting. The conversations never stopped; you just haven’t been in the room for the conversations.”
What appears to be a major striking point is that the tribes were not a part of the discussions before the bills were presented. This makes Siva feel like the measures are dead on arrival. With there being an expectation for other measures to be pushed in 2024, it is unlikely that these are the last conversations surrounding sports betting in California.
If the tribes in the state were to find common ground, that would be big sports betting news, to say the least.