According to a recent report issued by the New York State Gaming Commission, April’s sports betting handle was just shy of $2 billion, which made it the fifth-highest handle in the state’s history.
April Shocker
The men’s and women’s national college basketball tournament, also known as March Madness, is one of the biggest sporting events of the year and its blizzard of tournament games spans the entire month with only the Final Four and championship games bleeding into the early part of April.
Therefore, it is not surprising that top-rated sportsbooks experience a profound surge after a February malaise and then normally dip again in April. However, such was not the case in New York, as the handle was over $1.96 billion in April 2024, the fifth-highest ever in the Empire State. It was only slightly short of the highest handle ever recorded ($2.11 billion) set in November 2023.
Naturally, some of the handle was spillover from the March Madness tournament but only three of those games were played at the beginning of the month. To put it in context, New York’s handle in April 2024 was 6.2% higher than in March and a whopping 27.1% greater than in April 2023.
As for revenue, that did not disappoint either. In April, New York’s sharpest sportsbooks generated $183.8 million in gross gaming revenue, which was a stunning 32.4% increase from the same time last year while also outpacing March’s $151.7 million, a rise of 21.2%. The highest monthly revenue ever generated in New York occurred in January of this year when it reached $211.5 million.
FanDuel Flexes Again
The sports betting duopoly of FanDuel and DraftKings was evident again as the former continued to play Batman to the latter’s Robin. FanDuel led the pack in April in betting handle ($780.5 million) and revenue ($91 million) due to an impressive 11.7% hold, while DraftKings was the runner-up, posting $737 million in accepted wagers generating $63.2 million in revenue.
Las Vegas icon, Caesars, came in a distant third with $158.8 million in wagers, which produced $10.4 million in revenue. BetMGM was fourth with a $130.2 million handle and revenues of $9.1 million in April. Rounding out the top five was newcomer, Fanatics, with a $74.1 million handle and revenues of $5.6 million.
America Loves Gambling
Gaming of all kinds has grown like wildfire throughout the nation as evidenced by the staggering $17.67 billion in revenue over the first three months of 2024. March posted the second-highest revenue on record at $6.09 billion and April may prove to be even higher when the data is released.
State and local governments are the primary beneficiaries of the soaring success of gambling in America, collecting a record $14.67 billion in gaming tax revenue in 2023, which was a 9.7% increase from 2022.
“While gaming’s momentum remains strong, 2024 will be the new baseline for future growth after several years of sports betting legalization and post-pandemic consumer shifts,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “Gaming’s continued growth relies on maintaining our commitment to innovation and responsibility.”
