The NFL's Tennessee Titans had a forgettable season but the University of Tennessee’s basketball team may bring excitement to the Volunteer State.
Based on the state’s betting market, people like to wager and more short-term growth is ahead. The Tennessee Sports Wagering Council (SWC) announced statewide operators took in $417.4 million in February bets, a 23% decline from January’s $543.6 million.
A monthly decline is not surprising in February, as fewer football games usually correlate to fewer bets, since all other sports are still in their regular seasons. Despite the handle drop, Tennessee’s betting market is still strong and growing. December marked five full years of legalized sports wagering and so far every single month has been better than the previous year, a feat few states, if any, can boast.
This time, year-over-year handle increased by $37 million, or nearly 10%. Looking forward, operators expect to see a March boost, thanks to the NCAA tournaments that contributed to a monthly handle increase every single year. After that, things get worse and worse for bettors and sportsbooks as winter sports end and just baseball exists.
Southeast betting market going strong
Tennessee’s numbers in general are strong, especially in January, where we can compare them to neighboring states. Their January handle was fourth highest in their history and the fifth straight month of about half a billion in wagers. But their success doesn’t seem to be state-specific, the whole region had a pretty good start to the new year.
Neighboring Kentucky reported a $277.1 million January handle, the fifth best all-time. Plus, its $34 million in adjusted revenue was the state’s third highest ever.
Virginia’s $736.5 million in wagers was the second best all-time and its $81 million in adjusted income was the highest ever.
North Carolina's reported $811.6 million was the largest the state ever saw and its $74 million in adjusted revenue was the third most profitable month since legal sports betting launched.
