New York’s Sports Betting Performance Below Par

Operators in New York have presided over unprecedented handle figures since the inception of the state’s sports betting market in early January. A launch month wagering return of $1.67bn emphatically announced the Empire State’s arrival into the sportsbook sector, and immediately served to solidify its position as the industry’s most lucrative U.S jurisdiction.

However, in terms of its financial performance, New York’s inaugural month remains its strongest to press. Clearly, that astronomical figure would have always been challenging to eclipse, but a concerning pattern began to emerge towards the Spring. Between April and July, New York’s handle numbers steadily declined, resulting in the state dipping below the $1bn threshold for the first time in July. True, the traditional lull in the U.S sporting calendar can partially explain such dwindling returns, but a second consecutive month to register a total south of $1bn has raised one or two early Autumnal alarm bells.

Indeed, in August, New York residents placed $872.2m worth of bets, a 9% uplift on the previous month, but still some way short of previous monthly tallies. Encouragingly however, gross gaming revenue climbed to $99.6m, a significant, 35% improvement on July’s $73.6m. Local sports betting stakeholders will be hoping the onset of the NFL season, which commenced last weekend, will propel more players to wager in September.

New York’s sports wagering theatre is dominated by betting giant FanDuel, who are headquartered in New York City. The operator was accountable for delivering 43% of the state’s total handle volume, generating a staggering $46.6m in gross gaming revenue in the process. BallyBet undertook its first full trading month, after becoming the latest enterprise to gain a New York license in July. The Rhode Island-based outfit took $1m in bets throughout the duration of August, earning just short of 100k in revenue.