Virginia Sportsbooks See Sharp Decrease in February Handle
Virginia Betting Handle Falls: January Netted Record $652.8M
Virginia sportsbooks saw unprecedented action in January, netting a record $652.8 million in wagers. Given the enormity of the NFL season, this figure was hardly surprising.
The following month, however, was a different story.
The Virginia Lottery announced that those same sportsbooks collected a combined $545 million in February, well below their totals from the previous few weeks. Gross winnings totaled $495 million, and operators made $44.4 million in adjusted gross revenue.
What does that mean for sportsbooks? Here’s more on Virginia’s betting handle falling.
Down But Not Out
While Virginia’s betting handle was down in February, it still marked a 25.6% increase over the previous year. Gross winnings across mobile operators surpassed $490 million, with adjusted gross revenue equaling $44.1 million. Both totals far exceeded casino retail activity.
The state’s General Fund brought in $6.3 million in taxes, representing a decrease of $3.3 million from the previous month.
These figures make sense compared to January, in which operators typically see strong results because of the college football national championship and NFL playoffs.
Conversely, March tends to be a cash cow for sportsbooks due to overwhelming interest in the NCAA Tournament. Thus, Virginia’s betting handle falling shouldn’t be a concern.
Assessing the Landscape
Virginia bettors have their pick of more than a half-dozen sportsbooks, including DraftKings, FanDuel, bet365, BetMGM and Caesars. The state also has three brick-and-mortar casinos: Rivers Casino in Portsmouth, Caesars Virgina in Danville, and Bristol Casino, the future home of Hard Rock.
Those locations collected a total of $4.9 million in bets in February, equaling just $289 million in gross revenue. Across the board, slot machines brought in more money than table games.
Virginia still doesn’t allow online casino gaming, which is legal in only a handful of U.S. states. Although legalization is expected to grow within the next year because of its reputation as a strong revenue source, critics worry about its impact on problem gambling.
This form of gaming allows players to play many of their favorite games, such as video poker, blackjack, roulette, and dozens of different slots. It is widely seen as a more serious form of gambling, which has fueled concerns about it feeding addictive behaviors.
Meanwhile, online sports gambling is now legal in 30 states, plus Washington, D.C.
In terms of handle and tax revenue, Virginia has not prospered as much as some neighboring states despite being adjacent to the District of Columbia. That said, the returns have still been mostly positive despite a dip in February.
Still Room to Grow
Earlier this year, legislators voted unanimously to table a bill allowing Virginia residents to bet on in-state colleges and universities. This meant that Virginians missed an opportunity to cash in on JMU’s first-round upset of Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament. Theoretically, if passed, the bill would have helped generate greater revenue in an already bustling market.
Locally, interest in college sports is high. Virginia and Virginia Tech both have strong followings in football and basketball, along with Group of Five schools such as George Mason, James Madison, Liberty, and VCU.
Critics, though, worry that this measure could create a slippery slope in which college sports become more susceptible to bribery and game-fixing. Multiple states, including Ohio and Vermont, have already banned NCAA player props because of concerns about the harassment of student-athletes and coaches from betting sports online.
Stay tuned for more updates on Virginia’s betting handle falling in February.
For betting trends, odds, analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
