March In Arizona Posts Record Sports Betting Numbers
March In Arizona, By The Numbers
Arizona sports bettors recorded a record handle in the month of March, to the tune of nearly $691 million, according to a report released by the Arizona Department of Gaming. This is roughly 40% higher than Arizona’s April handle of $492 million and flies past the state’s previous record of $563.7 million set in January of 2022.
Director of the Arizona Department of Gaming Ted Vogt attributed the success to college basketball in a statement: “March was an exciting month for Arizona event wagering, with major sporting events like NCAA’s March Madness helping set a single month event wagering handle record.”
Gross gaming revenue generated by Arizona operators also increased by 52.4% up to approximately $37.2 million in the month of March. Promotional spending in the form of free bets and deductions continues to be substantial, in the amount of $18.6 million in March. So the state was able to apply taxes to roughly $18.7 million in revenue at an 8% rate for retail operators and 10% for mobile operators. The state collected $1.86 million in taxes, just shy of the $1.9 million-record set in January.
DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars Lead Charge
Arizona has eighteen mobile operators and two retail betting locations currently active in the state. DraftKings came out on top this March, posting a $230.2 million handle, becoming the first mobile operator in Arizona to pass the $1 billion handle mark since the state launched its market in September. DraftKings’ March handle shattered its February numbers that came in at $131.6 million. FanDuel, which posted the second highest handle, came out with the highest posted gross revenue among all operators in Arizona of roughly $12.9 million, nearly double DraftKings’ gross revenue of $6.6 million. BetMGM tallied a $133 million handle in March and was a close second to FanDuel’s posted gross revenue finishing out at $10.3 million. Caesars posted the fourth-highest handle throughout March in the amount of $95.7 million.
DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Caesars accounted for 93.6% of the $687.6 million online wagering handle that Arizona posted in March. Consequently, all four of these operators currently have or have plans to open retail sportsbooks in professional sports stadiums in Arizona. FanDuel operates in the Phoenix Suns’ Footprint Center and Caesars has a sportsbook open at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. BetMGM has plans to open their sportsbook in the Arizona Cardinals’ State Farm Stadium this upcoming NFL season and DraftKings at TPC Scottsdale, a PGA Tour landmark.
March Results Across U.S.
Over $9.2 billion was wagered across the country in the month of March, which is now the second-highest recorded monthly handle behind January’s $9.8 billion handle. Total gross sports wagering revenue for the month of March ($603 million) comes in third all-time behind 2021’s November revenue ($723 million) and January’s ($648 million. States collected over $118.5 in taxes in the month of March, with New York’s 51% tax rate collecting almost half in the amount of $58.3 million.
New York, unsurprisingly led the charge in recorded handle in the month of March posting a $1.64 billion handle followed by New Jersey which recorded a $1.1 billion handle. Illinois narrowly missed the $1 billion mark, coming in at $971.3 million, followed by Nevada, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, Indiana, and Virginia. These ten states have led to a record $27 billion handle in the first three months of 2022, over double what that was in 2021.