“The timing of Arizona’s launch could not have been better for sportsbooks,” said C.J. Pierre, lead analyst for PlayAZ.com. “The early launchers caught the vast majority of the football season and they were in position to catch the early excitement created by the Suns’ hot start. Plus, Arizona’s sportsbooks were able to ride a historic wave of winning in November that easily produced record revenue for operators in the U.S. All of it has helped the state’s sportsbooks get off to an unprecedented debut.”
Arizona online and retail sportsbooks attracted $466.7 million in wagers in November, down 4.0% from the $486.1 million in bets generated in October, according to official data released Tuesday by the Arizona Department of Gaming. A modest drop from October, which had five full weekends of NFL and college football games, follows national trends. Average betting volume remained high as the state’s sportsbooks averaged $15.6 million in wagers per day in November, down slightly from $15.7 million in wagers per day in October.
Arizona’s operators added to what was a record-shattering $723.7 million win for U.S. sportsbooks in November. Sportsbooks in the Grand Canyon state won $51.4 million in gross revenue, which was up from $37.5 million in October. After $18.4 million in promotional credits, the state taxed $31.9 million in gross event wagering receipts. That produced $3.2 million in privilege fees for the state.
Arizona has now shattered nearly every U.S. revenue record for a state through its first three months, even if those records will be short-lived following New York’s launch in January. Still, through three months, Arizona’s sportsbooks have generated:
- $1.2 billion in wagering, making Arizona the quickest to $1 billion in U.S. history.
- $121.2 million in gross revenue, easily the most of any state over its first three months.
- $4.2 million in privilege fees for the state.
“Arizona is in a remarkable position for such a young market,” said Eric Ramsey, an analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network, which includes PlayAZ.com. “Local bettors have responded enthusiastically, obviously, giving the state’s sportsbooks an impressive start. And operators have clearly placed a lot of emphasis on the state, considering the promotional spend so far. Tax revenue will likely lag some while operators are so aggressive, but that should continue to come around as the market settles.”
$459.3 million in wagers, or 98.4% of the state’s handle, came through online sportsbooks in November. Retail sportsbooks accounted for the remaining $7.4 million in wagers.
With the launch of SuperBook Sports and Fubo Sportsbook in December, and SaharaBets in January, Arizona is now home to 12 sportsbook operators. Despite the growing competition, DraftKings continued to top the market in November with $148.7 million in wagers, all from online bets. That was down from $151.4 million in October. DraftKings won $12.5 million in gross revenue from November’s bets, up from $10.98 million in November.
Rival FanDuel was second in the state with $118.0 million in wagers, including $113.3 million from online bets. That was down from $120.8 million in October, which included $115.9 million in online wagers. November’s online and retail bets produced a state-best $16.0 million in gross revenue.
“Anyone who watched an NFL game this fall and saw the number of sportsbook ads knows that operators have been pouring money into Arizona’s market so far,” Pierre said. “For good reason, too. Once operators gain a foothold, as DraftKings and FanDuel have in Arizona, it has proven nearly impossible to dislodge them from the market lead.”
The PlayUSA.com Network and its state-focused branches is a leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the U.S.
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