The Arizona Department of Gaming reported $618.6 million in sports wagering handle for October, the state’s second-highest total in 14 months of wagering. The report also completes the October picture nationally, helping regulated U.S. sportsbooks achieve their second-highest total handle in 53 months of post-PASPA era betting.
The Grand Canyon State also became the 11th state to clear $6 billion in all-time handle, moving ahead of Tennessee into the top 10 nationally with November’s handle still yet to be announced. Arizona currently ranks sixth in handle for the 2022 calendar year with $4.8 billion worth of wagers placed.
Arizona handle was up 15% in October compared to September’s total of $538 million and was a 27.3% improvement on the $486.1 million in bets placed in October 2021. This year’s October handle trails only the $691 million from March, which was the first time wagering was available in Arizona for the NCAA Tournament.
“It is clear Arizona’s sports betting industry continues to grow with over $132 million more dollars wagered in October 2022 compared to the same month in 2021,” said Ted Vogt, director of the Arizona Department of Gaming, in a statement. “With Super Bowl LVII and the Waste Management Phoenix Open on the horizon, I am excited to see how these major sports tourism events impact the state’s sports betting industry in the coming months.”
Super Bowl LVII, slated for State Farm Stadium in Glendale, will mark the first time the Super Bowl is held in a state where legal sports wagering is available at the time the game is played.
Total gross operator revenue for October was $49.4 million, a 10.5% decline from September’s record $55.2 million, as the win rate dipped more than two full percentage points to just shy of 8%. Including operator losses, promotional credits, and other deductions, adjusted revenue totaled $29.5 million, a 3.9% drop compared to the $30.7 reported the previous month.
The state received nearly $3 million in taxes, pushing the all-time total since launch over $25 million. Arizona has received $21.3 million in tax receipts thus far in the calendar year.
The overall national handle for October finished $10 million shy of $9.7 billion and within $150 million of the record $9.8 billion-plus wagered in January. There is an outside chance November’s handle could reach $10 billion, with the current tally close to $8.4 billion and waiting on revenue reports from Arizona and Illinois.
FanDuel surges but DraftKings keeps crown
FanDuel posted a 34.1% month-over-month increase in handle to $194.2 million, its highest amount of action in the 14 months of wagering. It remains the only mobile sportsbook to surpass $20 million in monthly gross revenue, doing so for the second time with $20.5 million. FanDuel also posted a double-digit hold for the fourth consecutive month at 10.5%, but that was 2.8 percentage points lower than in September.
DraftKings, the only mobile book to top $200 million in monthly handle, did so for the third time this year at $214.7 million as it also became the first operator to clear $2 billion in all-time Arizona handle. It reached eight figures in gross revenue for the third straight month, though its 5.5% hold meant only $11.8 million in winnings.
Like FanDuel, BetMGM pushed its run of double-digit win rates to four months, reaching 10.7% to keep $10.1 million of the $94 million worth of accepted wagers. It was the highest handle reported by BetMGM since the $100.6 million in April. Caesars Sportsbook rounded out the big four for handle and revenue, totaling $57.2 million in wagers while its month-over-month revenue plummeted 38.1% to $3.9 million as its win rate was cleaved in half to 6.8%.
Barstool Sportsbook was the only other mobile operator to reach eight figures in handle at $17.5 million, but like Caesars, its win rate was cut in half to 5.2%. Its $910,000 in revenue was a 41% falloff from September.
Among the smaller operators of the 18 that accepted wagers in October, Desert Diamond’s handle more than doubled from September to nearly $5 million while also setting a record for monthly revenue at $410,000. It had previously accepted $7.1 million worth of bets total since launching in February.
Another retail loss for FanDuel
Relative to its relentless revenue-making on the mobile side both in Arizona and nationwide, FanDuel’s retail sportsbook at the Footprint Center where the Phoenix Suns play looks mortal. The book posted a loss of $185,000 from $2.8 million wagered in October, its largest in the 14 months of wagering and its third monthly loss in the last five.
BetMGM, which had its first full month of wagering at State Farm Stadium in October, reported $2.3 million in accepted bets, keeping $190,000 while posting a win rate of 8.1%. Caesars Sportsbook’s retail venue at Chase Field had an 11.1% hold, reporting $110,000 in revenue from $985,000 handle.
Among the state’s limited event wagering licensees, Arizona Downs maintained its 100% record of double-digit holds, with the Prescott Valley harness track improving to 5-for-5 with an 11.9% mark for October that resulted in $11,500 in revenue from $97,000 handle. In contrast, Turf Paradise narrowly finished ahead for the month, keeping just $795 from $540,000 in wagers.
Though it has generated slightly less than $25,000 handle in five months of operation, the Baseline venue of Charley’s Sports Grill has an overall hold of 53%, keeping more than $13,000 in winnings to date. It maintained that status quo with a 58.2% hold in October, reporting $6,300 in revenue from $11,000 worth of wagers.
