New Yorkers have wagered more than $2 billion since online sports gambling became legal in the state in early January, smashing projections and making New York the leader in mobile betting.
For state finances, however, the $2 billion means nearly $80 million in tax revenue, almost all of which goes to fund state education projects. This number is far more than the $49 million that the state budget office initially estimated it would receive in the first three months. The $49 million estimate has recently been increased to $110 million. New York has also collected around $200 million in license fees from operators.
Operators pay a 51% tax rate on gross gaming revenue.
“It’s our first month, ever, and we’re at $2 billion,” said State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. to the New York Times, a Democrat from Queens who serves as the chairman of the committee on racing, gambling and wagering. “It’s amazing. The astonishment of these numbers: It’s incredible.”
New options for gambling may be on the way. This month, the New York Yankees president, Randy Levine, expressed support for a betting kiosk at Yankee stadium following in the steps of other professional sport franchises around the US.
New Jersey previously was the number one state for sports betting volume, many New Yorkers were known to cross state lines to place online bets ahead of big games. However, this January, the Empire State took over the Garden State to aggressively seize market share, claiming $1.6 billion worth of sports bets, which is around $300 million better than the best month in New Jersey.
It should be noted that this didn’t stop New Jersey from surpassing its previous best month in January, taking $1.34 billion in bets. This was about 40% more than the amount brought in from Jersey’s casinos and horse tracks in January 2021.
NYC Sportsbook rankings (in revenue)
- Caesars took over $615 million worth of bets, generating nearly $56 million in revenue.
- FanDuel took nearly $502 million in bets, generating $23.6 million in revenue.
- DraftKings took $367 million in bets, generating $27 million in revenue.
- BetMGM took $78 million in bets, generating $3.2 million in revenue.
- Rush Street Interactive took $32 million in bets, generating $837,035 in revenue.
- PointsBet took $29 million in bets, generating $2.3 million in revenue.
Now, if you thought that the impressive takings that sportsbooks have recorded meant the industry was raking in profits, it's more likely they have lost money according to the New York Post. Many punters are capitalizing on alluring offers from operators - such as unbeatable odds, sign-up bonuses, match deposits - that have led to heated competition as sportsbooks try to outdo each other.
At Caesars Sportsbook, the company has signed up about half a million new customers in New York since launch.
“The volumes in New York were about two times what we were anticipating,” the company’s CEO Tom Reeg told investors. “New York is approaching as large as the rest of the business in Caesars Digital combined.
At the same time as a boom in sports betting and tax revenues for the state the Office of Addiction Services and Supports says that it has already witnessed a 46% increase in calls to its gambling helpline this January, compared to last year, amid public awareness campaigns about responsible gaming. New York’s mobile gambling law - passed last year as part of the state budget - called for around $6 million to be devoted to gambling addiction services every fiscal year.