A million here, a million there, and before you know it, you have a billion.
FanDuel became the first mobile sports wagering operator in New York to surpass $1 billion in revenue after the state’s Gaming Commission reported Friday that the online titan generated $19.8 million in winnings for the week ending May 28. That lifted FanDuel’s overall running total to $1,007,415,901 through 73 weeks of reporting by the NYSGC since mobile wagering launched in the Empire State on Jan. 8, 2022.
To put that figure in perspective, there are only five other states — New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Indiana — that have topped $1 billion in total operator revenue. FanDuel’s revenue, gleaned solely from bettors making online wagers in the Empire State over the past 17 months, accounts for approximately 5.5% of the $18.3 billion in gross revenue generated by all operators in the post-PASPA era when including May’s unofficial numbers from New York.
| Mobile Operator | Weeks of Wagering | Gross Gaming Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| FanDuel | 73 | $1,007,415,901 |
| DraftKings | 73 | $567,294,778 |
| Caesars | 73 | $279,179,103 |
| BetMGM | 71 | $120,733,913 |
| PointsBet | 70 | $35,097,820 |
| BetRivers | 73 | $34,517,168 |
| WynnBET | 69 | $8,531,912 |
| Resorts World | 65 | $4,445,468 |
| Bally's | 47 | $818,774 |
It is difficult to overstate FanDuel’s impact on New York’s sports betting scene, driving the state to the No. 1 spot for handle on a monthly basis for each of the 16 months mobile wagering has been available. New York has the top 11 all-time national monthly handle totals, with the peak coming in January at close to $1.8 billion. The state also lays claim to 13 of the 16 occasions when monthly gross operator revenue topped $100 million, holding the Nos. 2-10 spots in that category.
The key to revenue? Win often and win big
Weekly mobile #SportsBetting numbers 🧵for #NewYork via @NYSGamingComm. Operator notes (1/9)@FDSportsbook
-1st NY mobile operator to $1 Billion in revenue
-Highest all-time weekly WR (17.17% 7/10/22)
-1st sub-$120M handle since 9/18 ($109.2M)7/x #GamblingTwitter
— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) June 2, 2023
FanDuel has a 67-week streak in which it has finished each week with positive gross gaming revenue. Its last losing week came on Feb. 13, 2022, which included Super Bowl LVI and came at a time when bettors were churning through the sportsbook’s introductory sign-up offers and promotions at a heavy volume.
FanDuel’s three losing weeks in New York spanned its first six weeks of conducting wagering. The three “losses” are tied with Caesars Sportsbook and BetMGM for the second-fewest among operators. DraftKings has finished in the black all 73 weeks of wagering.
While FanDuel has posted the two largest weekly losses in state history, the mobile leviathan can brag about having 13 of the 14 all-time occurrences when an operator cleared $20 million in gross revenue. Eight of those instances have happened this year, including six in a 10-week span from March 12 to May 14.
FanDuel set the all-time operator weekly high at $26.6 million for the week ending Jan. 22, aided by the Buffalo Bills and New York Giants losing divisional-round NFL playoff games. There have also been plenty of occasions when it has flirted with the $20 million benchmark, finishing with $17 million or more in 17 other weeks.
| Week Ending | Operator | Gross Gaming Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| January 22, 2023 | FANDUEL | $26,569,171 |
| March 26, 2023 | FANDUEL | $24,452,581 |
| May 7, 2023 | FANDUEL | $22,291,942 |
| April 16, 2023 | FANDUEL | $22,130,966 |
| April 17, 2022 | FANDUEL | $22,081,850 |
| November 20, 2022 | FANDUEL | $21,961,070 |
| May 14, 2023 | FANDUEL | $21,443,765 |
| April 24, 2022 | FANDUEL | $21,188,729 |
| March 12, 2023 | FANDUEL | $20,864,775 |
| December 11, 2022 | FANDUEL | $20,787,305 |
| April 23, 2023 | FANDUEL | $20,737,048 |
| January 22, 2023 | DraftKings | $20,241,157 |
| October 16, 2022 | FANDUEL | $20,231,312 |
| February 5, 2023 | FANDUEL | $20,199,470 |
FanDuel’s ability to create separation from its peers, both in New York and nationwide, comes mainly from being the first to market with single-game parlay wagering, which has firmly taken hold in the U.S. and is wildly popular during NFL season. The NYSGC does not provide wagering handle and revenue by sport or category, but anecdotal evidence from other states that publish such figures shows a connection between FanDuel’s outsized hold and a notable percentage of handle originating from same-game parlays.
FanDuel has a hold of close to 10.4% in New York — nearly 50% above the industry standard of 7% and 2.4 percentage points above its eternal rival DraftKings, which is second at 7.9%. It has posted a double-digit hold in 42 of the 73 weeks of wagering, with three weeks in May topping 16% and reaching an all-time high of 17.3% for the week ending May 28.
FanDuel had a nine-week streak of 10% or higher holds from July 31 to Sept. 25, part of a run in which it reached double digits in 19 of the final 22 weeks of 2022. Its performance in the Empire State is no outlier: FanDuel has a 9.5% or higher win rate in nine states where it has generated at least $1 billion handle, and its hold in New York ranks fifth in that group.
But, oh, that tax bill
| State | Launch Date | Revenue | Win Rate | Last Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | January 2022 | $1,007,415,901 | 10.37% | May 28* |
| Pennsylvania | July 2019 | $750,695,632 | 9.50% | April 2023 |
| lllinois | August 2020 | $683,027,939 | 10.21% | March 2023 |
| Virginia | January 2021 | $412,399,981 | 11.34% | March 2023 |
| Indiana | October 2019 | $333,505,627 | 9.91% | April 2023 |
| Michigan | January 2021 | $327,732,149 | 11.28% | April 2023 |
| Arizona | September 2021 | $251,931,573 | 9.60% | February 2023 |
| Maryland | November 2022 | $159,556,427 | 15.64% | April 2023 |
| Connecticut | October 2021 | $103,518,541 | 11.82% | April 2023 |
| *-Includes unofficial May totals thru May 28 |
Winning in New York comes at a price.
FanDuel pays 51% tax on its gross revenue to the state, with the money going into New York’s education fund. Its tax bill for the four full weeks of May is estimated to be more than $36.1 million, and its $36.2 million paid in April would have ranked first nationally if separated from the rest of New York, since it was more than the other eight mobile operators and four retail sportsbooks combined in the Empire State.
FanDuel’s overall mobile tax bill in New York will surpass $500 million when May’s numbers are released. The $477.6 million in levies paid in the first 16 months account for more than 15% of the nearly $3.16 billion in state taxes raised nationwide during the post-PASPA era.
