With a constant double-digit hold percentage and falling promotional deductions Virginia’s legal sports betting operators are enjoying 2023, and so too are the state coffers.
The Virginia Lottery announced that their online and retail operators accepted $425.9 million in bets in April, a 16.7% drop after over $500 million the previous month. April’s handle also fell behind February’s $433.8 million. But on the brighter side, April 2023 saw nearly 7% in increased action year over year.
Virginia’s bettors took home $380.8 million, meaning the sportsbooks kept just over $45 million in gross revenue (and $38.9 million in taxable revenue after deductions), a 10.6% hold. So far in 2023, the sportsbooks have held 9.7%, 9.1%, 10.8%, and now 10.6%, all generating millions of dollars to the state’s general fund.
From these numbers, the state saw $5.8 million in taxes, with 10 sportsbooks reporting a profit.
Retail vs Online
March Madness’ absence in April can be a reason for the overall decline but the state’s retail operators saw a greater decline. Brick and mortar sportsbooks saw a 23.3% month-over-month drop while the online markets just 16.6%.
Online betting sites still dominated in the Old Dominion, totaling 99% of all wagers placed in April.
Promotional Drop
As we move away from the betting world’s top events (February’s Super Bowl and March Madness), online operators have pulled back on their Virginia sports betting promos. The promotional deductions by the online operators have fallen roughly 50% each of the past two months. April saw just $1.9 million versus $3.8 million in March, and $7.7 million in February.
Year-over-year data shows just how much sportsbooks have focused on profits and less on acquisition. April 2022 $11.2 million in promos and last year’s Super Bowl had $15.8 million.
