Online sports betting in New York State has gotten off to a fast start.
According to state figures, nearly $2 billion in wagers were taken during the first 30 days of operation that began in January. There was $138 million in sports betting revenue off that handle. New York State took in about $70 million in tax revenue.
“Over the past month, we’ve seen how mobile sports wagering can be an economic engine for New York, driving significant funding to our schools, youth sports, and so much more,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. “As this new industry continues to grow, New York will make sure we have the resources and guidelines in place to make it a success for all.”
Mobile sports wagering began in New York State on Jan. 8, 2022. A total of $1.98 billion of online wagers were taken in the first 30 days of operation.
The total gross gaming revenue of over $138 million was subjected to a 51% tax rate for the state. According to state law, tax revenue generated by the mobile sports wagering industry is required to go toward elementary and secondary education, grants for youth sports programming, property tax relief, and problem gambling prevention, treatment and recovery services.
The governor said in a statement that online sports betting was designed to “keep New York bettors in New York, rather than having state residents travel to neighboring states to wager.” New Jersey, a neighbor of New York, is currently the largest market in terms of handle over a full calendar year, fueled previously be New York bettors.
Gaming Commission Executive Director Robert Williams said in a statement that the state’s haul was a national record for monthly tax revenue from sports betting.
State Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr., a policymaker behind the efforts, said: “When we brought mobile sports betting to New York, we had confidence it was going to be a success, but to be able to break the national record of total handle for sports betting in a single month in our very first month, with primarily only six sportsbooks, is both rewarding and promising.
Despite just starting out in the industry, Assemblymember J. Gary Pretlow said that the state is “well on the way to being the sports betting capital of the world.”
According to GeoComply, a geolocation software firm, more than 1.76 million unique player accounts were utilized for over 187 million transactions.
