The New York State Gaming Commission reported Thursday a record $166.8 million in sports wagering adjusted gross revenue for September, the second-highest monthly total nationally in the post-PASPA era.
The operator haul bettered March’s previous New York standard of $163.6 million and is second only to the $209 million generated by Ohio sportsbooks in the state’s debut this January. The Empire State has generated 17 of the 20 all-time state monthly revenue totals that have topped $100 million.
The state’s eight mobile sportsbooks and four commercial retail ones accepted close to $1.77 billion worth of wagers. That is the third-highest monthly handle in both state and national history and came within $31.1 million of January’s record that landed just shy of $1.8 billion.
Handle surged 39.8% compared to September 2022, while revenue was only up 15% year-over-year, as the 9.4% hold was two percentage points lower compared to last year. The Empire State has the top 13 monthly national handles of the post-PASPA era, including all 10 above $1.5 billion.
The state received $84.6 million in tax revenue for September, pushing the total for the 2023 calendar year over $600 million and above $1.3 billion all-time. This year’s tax receipts are running $133 million ahead of last year’s pace, with the $1.19 billion in operator revenue 28.2% higher compared to the first nine months of 2022.
DraftKings tops $700 million handle
DraftKings led New York’s mobile operators in handle for the second straight month, topping $700 million for the first time in 21 months of wagering at $710.5 million. It joined FanDuel as the only mobile operators to crest $700 million in monthly handle, with FanDuel accomplishing the feat first in January and again in March. DraftKings also completed the double of new highs in handle and revenue as its $61.4 million in winnings breezed past the sportsbook’s previous record of $52 million in March.
FanDuel, however, continued to rule the roost when it comes to revenue. It claimed $76.9 million in winnings thanks to an 11.3% hold on $682.5 million worth of accepted wagers. It was the seventh straight month the online juggernaut posted a double-digit win rate against the betting public. FanDuel topped $70 million in revenue for the seventh time in the last 12 months.
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September’s numbers also pushed FanDuel above $5 billion handle in the Empire State in 2023 and past $1.2 billion in all-time revenue. The latter figure also means FanDuel has given the state more than $600 million in tax receipts since last year’s mobile launch.
BetRivers also rewrote its New York records in September with $4.2 million in revenue from just over $50 million handle. Its previous best for revenue was $3.6 million in March, and it landed just shy of $50 million in wagers in both March and April.
Caesars Sportsbook had a 6.6% year-over-year increase in handle to $174 million, but that was not enough to prevent the first time it failed to attain 10% market share in New York. It entered the Empire State in dramatic fashion last year with staggering bonus offers, matching initial deposits up to $3,000 and offering $300 worth of free bets, but has seen its market share decline since. Caesars posted a 7.6% hold in September to claim $12.6 million in revenue.
The state’s two smallest mobile books — WynnBET and Resorts World — failed to post 5% holds in September. Wynn’s 3.4% win rate was a low among the eight as it claimed $367,000 in revenue from $10.9 million handle, while Resorts World had a 3.6% hold that led to $246,000 revenue off of $6.8 million worth of bets.
Running 2023 YTD Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state (thru Sept in CAPS)
1 NEW YORK $13B
2 New Jersey $6.47B
3 Illinois $6.02B
4 Nevada $4.87B
5 Ohio $4.54B
6 Pennsylvania $4.27B
7 Arizona $3.55B
8 Virginia $3.23B
9 Colorado $2.86B
10 Michigan $2.59B#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) October 6, 2023
Retail books enjoy best month of 2023
The state’s four retail sportsbooks built on a strong August, claiming a year-best $1.3 million in revenue in September. The quartet had a collective 14.7% hold on $8.7 million handle, as all four books posted double-digit win rates. Tioga Downs finally moved into the black for 2023 as its $146,000 in September revenue has the book $84,000 to the good on $4.8 million in wagers for the year.
Rivers Casino paced the group in revenue and handle, crafting a 14.8% hold to keep $541,000 of the $3.7 million handle. Both figures were yearly bests for Rivers, which is less than $20,000 from $25 million in all-time revenue dating back to the state’s July 2019 launch for in-person wagering.
