This January marks the second anniversary since the launch of regulated online sports betting in New York, and during that time the state shattered many records. For the occasion, Gov. Kathy Hochul provided a closer look at the second year’s numbers, disclosing tax revenue of US$862 million. This was an improvement over the first year’s results.
The Empire State officially kicked off legal mobile sports wagering on January 8, 2022, allowing a total of nine private operators to offer and take online bets on various sports. In its first year, the market delivered US$693 million in tax revenue from bets, as well as US$200 million from licensing fees, bringing the total since launch to more than US$1.75 billion.
Marking an Immense Milestone
In a statement, gov. Hochul remarked New York is the clear leader in offering responsible entertainment for millions while generating record-setting revenue for education, youth sports, and tackling problem gambling. She is looking forward to the third year of successful gaming policies that will deliver more world-class mobile sports betting experience for residents.
Since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in May 2018, the Empire State has been third in the overall betting handle. Neighbouring New Jersey is first with US$44.2 billion, with Nevada second with US$36 billion, while New York is third with US$35.7 billion. However, they have offered online sports betting for 5 ½ and 11 years, respectively, while New York offers just two.
GeoComply, a software provider to sportsbooks in the state that provides geolocation services, reported that more than 5.6 million unique sports betting registrations have been created in the Empire State since the market launch. In that time, they have completed over 2.6 billion transactions. As of January 7, 2024, the market reached US$35.7 billion in wagering handle.
According to GeoComply data, the top four most wagered-on sports by New Yorkers were the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NCAAF. These four accounted for over US$11.1 billion of the total mobile sports betting handle. The NFL was in the number one spot with US$$2,994,128,825, followed by MLB with US$3,285,822,760, the NBA with US$3,679,461,779, and lastly NCAAF with US$1,114,178,066.
Local Lawmakers Pursue Legal iGaming
With the success of mobile sports betting, local lawmakers like Sen. Joe Addabbo want to further elevate the state’s gambling scene. Just recently, he filed legislation S4856, which would amend the state’s betting law to legalize mobile casinos. However, some of his enthusiasm was squashed as gov. Hochul did not include iGaming as an item in her new executive budget.
Meanwhile, New York’s mobile sports betting operators are also in favour of legal interactive casinos in the Empire State. This month, the Sports Betting Alliance, a trade group consisting of DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Fanatics, has launched a 30-second ad on TV and digital channels which highlights the economic benefits of launching online gambling in the state.
Source: “Hochul: Mobile sports wagering generated $862M for state in second year” Yahoo, January 29, 2024
