DraftKings in June became the first major mobile sports wagering operator to post a monthly loss in Arizona, significantly dragging down the overall revenue for the month in the Grand Canyon State, according to figures released Tuesday by the state’s Department of Gaming.
The online titan was the first book with at least $5 million handle to post a gross revenue loss. Its bettors came out $3.2 million ahead on $92.8 million wagered in June, resulting in a -3.4% win rate. When including promotional play, DraftKings’ adjusted loss climbed to more than $4.5 million — a swing of more than $16.7 million compared to the $12.2 million it claimed in May.
Overall, state operators generated close to $12.1 million from $318.8 million handle, giving them a 3.8% hold. Promotional offerings were again robust, though the $9.2 million was the lowest since launch last September. Handle dropped 30.9% compared to May’s $461.5 million wagered, but gross revenue plummeted 78.1% as the June win rate was more than eight percentage points off the all-time high that nearly reached 12% the previous month.
The state was eligible to levy taxes on more than $2.8 million in adjusted revenue, providing nearly $770,000 in receipts. Arizona generated more than $11 million in state taxes in the first half of 2022 and close to $17 million in 10 months of wagering.
A prolonged rough patch for DraftKings
JUNE #SportsBetting figures for #Arizona vis DoG, a 🧵. Mobile Han/GGR/WR by operator (2/6)@DKSportsbook: $92.82M/-$3.16M/-3.4%@FDSportsbook: $103.98M/$7.37M/7.09%@BSSportsbook: $9.32M/~$800K/8.58%
5/x #GamblingTwitter
— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) August 30, 2022
When reviewing the last four months of reports in Arizona for DraftKings, May’s success looks to be an outlier. It posted gross revenue win rates under 3% in the other three months, and June marked its lowest handle since generating $97.7 million in the initial month of operations last September. Its adjusted loss of more than $4.5 million for June wiped out 17.1% of the $26.5 million it had claimed in adjusted revenue in the first five months of the year.
DraftKings was not the only operator to post some sort of loss. Its eternal rival FanDuel did not emerge unscathed on the retail side, with the public coming out nearly $131,000 ahead on more than $2.3 million handle for a -5.7% hold. It was the first retail monthly loss for FanDuel, though its in-person win rate for the year is still a healthy 11%, keeping more than $2 million of the $18.2 million bet.
Five other mobile books — Unibet, Fubo, SuperBook, Bally Bet, and Desert Diamonds — all finished with five-figure negative adjusted revenue totals for June when including their promotional credits. Golden Nugget joined DraftKings in posting a gross revenue loss, albeit substantially smaller at $11,321 from nearly $210,000 handle.
Despite the adjusted loss, SuperBook continues to make notable inroads in Arizona, as its handle reached a monthly high above $2.6 million — more than double its March total of $1.2 million.
Limited event operators join the market
Eight new limited event wagering licensees accepted their first wagers, and there were ups and downs for the debutants. Charley’s Sports did the best in terms of revenue, claiming $5,794 from just $13,276 wagered for an eye-popping 43.6% hold. AZ Downs was the only other newcomer to reach four figures in revenue with $2,659 from a handle of $10,822.
Two operators finished in the red, with Harold’s having the roughest opening month as bettors walked away $6,984 more to the good than the $20,046 in bets placed. Its numbers left the newcomers with a collective loss of $4,510 on $54,600 handle. Turf Paradise, which was the first limited events licensee to accept wagers in April, claimed nearly $12,000 in revenue while posting a 9.6% hold.
The final national numbers for June
FINAL June Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state:
1 New York $1.06B
2 New Jersey $633.2M
3 Illinois $628.5M
4 Nevada $490.4M
5 Pennsylvania $393.5M
6 ARIZONA $318.77M <-NEW
7 Colorado $313.2M
8 Virginia $295.2M
9 Michigan $292.4M
10 Indiana $256.3M#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) August 30, 2022
Overall national handle for June in the 26 states and jurisdictions that conduct commercial wagering totaled nearly $5.5 billion, a drop of 18% compared to May’s $6.7 billion, but also 47.3% higher compared to June 2021 when six fewer jurisdictions were accepting bets. Operators claimed $332.9 million in gross revenue, resulting in a hold just shy of 6.1%.
That was a 45.3% fall-off from May’s $608.5 million, exacerbated by a drop of more than three full percentage points in the national win rate. Year-over-year gross revenue dropped by 0.4%, with that hold also more than three percentage points lower in the comparable period.
More than $56.3 million worth of promotional credits were distributed, leaving states eligible to tax almost $276.6 million in adjusted revenue. The tax bill for June topped $71 million, which has already been exceeded in July as operators have fared far better to start the second half of the year.
