Increase for sixth month in a row
The latest news from Pennsylvania’s sports betting market shows that the state’s handle jumped again for the sixth consecutive month to $316.5m.
Pennsylvania legalized sports betting back in November 2018, but it was the implementation of mobile sports betting in the summer that has resulted in a huge jump in numbers.
overall sports betting activity increased 31.2% compared to October
According to figures released in the latest state report covering November, overall sports betting activity increased 31.2% compared to October. The state’s sportsbooks reported $14.7m in adjusted gross revenue (AGR), which represents a decrease of $230,000 from October.
Online for the win
Online sports betting in PA accounted for $266.7m, which represents 84.3% of November’s handle. That’s up slightly from 82.4% in October. It’s the third straight month the online share has topped 80% and that’s mainly due to the success of fantasy sports.
For instance, FanDuel was up 31.4% to $149.7m in online bets since October, which makes for 56.1% of the online handle. This accounts to a 47.3% share of Pennsylvania’s total handle.
FanDuel will be hoping to emulate the success of DraftKings Sportsbook, which took $16.2m in bets when it launched early November with Penn National’s Meadows Racetrack & Casino.
Numbers look good
Another November launch saw Kindred’s Unibet brand get off the ground. Unibet joined forces with Mohegan Sun Pocono to accept wagers totaling $1.9m in its first month.
Overall, growth continued to stay healthy among casinos in the state as they all saw their betting handle increase in November compared to October. The only exception was Boy’s Valley Forge. It announced a 21% slip, taking home a retail handle of just $3.2m.
Unibet joined forces with Mohegan Sun Pocono to accept wagers totaling $1.9m
Other top brands operating in the state include BetRivers and PlaySugarHouse, which are operated by Rush Street and Kambi respectively. They both reported an online handle of $63m, with Greenwood Gaming‘s Parx coming in third place with $22.4m.
FOX Bet, operating through Mount Airy, also had a big win in Pennsylvania, thanks to the launch of their online poker offering through The Stars Group. The new online PokerStar’s games launched in early November and contributed to a $13.5m online handle, up 72.2% since October.
High tax rate
As for land-based casinos, Rivers Philadelphia and Rivers Pittsburgh also did well, bringing in $17.7m combined.
With Pennsylvania requesting the highest tax rate of any other sports betting state at 36% of adjusted gross revenue (AGR), it’s expected that officials will be more than happy with these results.