Virginia’s sportsbooks have posted their most lucrative month to date, recording almost $50m in revenues in November, according to data released by the Virginia Lottery.
Continuing on a record-breaking autumn period that saw the total wagers record smashed in October, the state’s sportsbooks generated over $4m in taxes.
PlayVirginia, the firm that tracks The Old Dominion state’s sports betting market, explained that the overlap of football and basketball season creates the perfect conditions for sportsbooks to generate revenue.
“When football and basketball seasons converge, as they did in November, the inventory of games creates a ripe opportunity for sportsbooks,” said Dann Stupp, lead analyst for PlayVirginia.com. “Importantly, it shows that Virginians have more diverse interests than just football, a sign that sportsbooks won’t be giving up the gains made over the past three months once the football season ends.”
Breaking down the total performance in November, bettors in Virginia wagered $402.6 m, falling just 6% shy of October’s record figure. Betting volume per day fell from $13.8m to $13.4m per day throughout the 30 days in November.
However, total sportsbook revenue reached a new record of $48.3m, up 60% from October’s total of $30.2m.
After promotional expenses, sportsbooks were left with $29.9m in taxable revenue, generating $4.2m in taxes for the state.
Finally, the total hold of the market was 12%, reaching the second-highest tally for a single month, which PlayVirginia attributes to both ‘bad luck on NFL games’ and ‘online in-game betting, which typically yields a higher hold than more conventional wagering.’
“A higher hold percentage is additional evidence that the market is maturing,” added Eric Ramsey, an analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network, which includes PlayVirginia.com. “Not only have sportsbooks gained more customers, particularly over the last three months, but bettors are becoming more at ease with less conventional forms of betting.”
