Pennsylvanians have been on a tear these past couple months, betting more and more as the Philadelphia Eagles and 76ers impressed, however just because you take in a lot of bets doesn’t mean it was a good month for the operators.
The Keystone State accepted $934.1 million in bets this November, a roughly 12% increase from October’s record $829 million. This is the first month Pennsylvania saw more than $900 million in bets, a month after its first month (October) with more than $800 million.
Pennsylvanians loved to bet online where nearly 94% of all wagers were placed either on a phone or computer, versus 93% in October.
ESPN Bet promos sink taxable revenue
While setting a record for action is top on the list if you are a sportsbook, its also important to make money in the process.
With the launch of ESPN Bet, their promotional offers were a key reason why revenue plummeted statewide. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reported a gross revenue of $49.1 million, well short of October’s $73.6 million. Compared to November 2022, revenue this year was 75% lower. ESPN Bet officially took in $66.8 million in wagers (third highest in the state) but ended up losing $7.8 million from those bets.
Promotional credits increased by nearly $11 million and on top of that bettors improved their winning percentage, dropping the operator hold to 5.2% (from 8.8% in October). That means the statewide tax bill took a significant hit. Pennsylvania sports betting led to $4.6 million in taxes, well below the $16.4 million in October.
FanDuel still dominant
ESPN Bet’s promotional spend shows just how daunting it is to take on the large online sportsbooks. Despite giving away millions to their customers, FanDuel and DraftKings saw the vast majority of wagers.
FanDuel took in $384 million in action and DraftKings reported $253 million, combined they controlled 68% of the market. After ESPN’s $66.8 million came BetMGM with $54.3 million and Caesars with $47.6 million. But it was BetParx who made the most bang for their buck. Their $1 million in total revenue (from $24 million in wagers), was only behind FanDuel and DraftKings.
