The January figures for sports betting in Massachusetts have been released. The market launched on January 31, 2023. Therefore, only one full day of activity is in the report. At the three retail operators, however, the market saw more than $500,000 wagered. Massachusetts sportsbooks in totality saw a net loss in revenue during this stretch.
A Look At Retail Betting In Massachusetts
Leading the charge is Encore Boston Harbor. The Boston-based retail operator reported $370,881.75 in betting handle. This total saw a -19.8% hold rate, however, for -$74,230.15 in revenue. Local residents were the big winners on launch day as they beat the book.
Plainridge Park reported $82,830.49 in wagers on launch day. Plainridge faired much better in the revenue department than Encore, seeing a 64.9% hold rate on wagers. Total taxable gaming revenue (TGR) was $53,554.26 with the state seeing $8,033.14 in taxes.
Finally, MGM Springfield reported $57,235.80 in wagers. This led to a 21% hold rate for $12,152.56 in TGR and $1,827.88 in state taxes.
Looking at the total, however, the full market saw a net loss of $7,248.76 in TGR for its launch day. So far, Massachusetts is off to a middling start.
Numbers Likely To Improve
This is, however, a very small sample size being just one day of active bets. February will paint a much better picture of how the retail sports betting market will look in Massachusetts. Super Bowl will surely see a spike in activity at all operators. More wagers give more opportunity for sports betting revenue, so a likely spike in that area is also incoming.
March 10 will see the launching of online sportsbooks in Massachusetts which is expected to be a massive industry. The launch will coincide with the NCAA March Madness tournament which always brings out the bettors.
While the single day of live activity in Massachusetts leaves more to be desired, it is not the be-all end-all for the young market. The full scope of what Massachusetts betting will look like will come following the launch of online operators. This is just the calm before the sports betting storm.
