Virginia's legal sports betting handle in November fell slightly from its all-time high in October but remarkably stayed above half a million dollars.
The Virginia Lottery on Friday announced that the state's sports betting sites handled $518.8 million in wagers in November, down from $528 million in October.
The $518.8 million wagered on sports betting in Virginia for the month is still a significant 28.9% jump from November 2021. The commonwealth now has 13 licensed operators, compared to the 10 one year ago. That being said, the majority of the commonwealth’s handle is dominated by a few of the larger sportsbooks that launched in 2021.
Hold and tax still on the rise
Before deductions, Virginians took home $461.2 million in winnings, a 3% drop from October. The hold percentage, on the other hand, jumped from 9.7% to 11.1%.
November was also a better month for the commonwealth’s General Fund, which gets 97.5% of the tax. The 15% tax rate on sportsbooks turned the $52.8 million of adjusted revenue into $7.8 million in tax.
Both these numbers were a decent increase from October’s $45.5 million in adjusted gross revenue and just under $7 million in taxes.
The hold percentage is a key reason for the difference between the two months. On top of that, eight of the 13 books for were profitable and paid taxes in November, compared to seven of the 13 in October.
