Last week, the New York Gaming Commission announced a record $2.3 billion handle for October 2024. However, bettors routed operator revenue with strong customer winnings. The $2.3 billion in wagers for October was up 15.7% year-over-year. This was the state’s fifth time having a handle of $2 billion or more since wagering became legal in January 2022. Compared to figures in September 2024, wagering rose by 12%.
In October, the nine online sportsbooks in New York combined for $176.3 million in revenue. That was up 6% year-over-year but was down 13.9% from their figures in September. Online sportsbooks were hammered by the public for two weeks in a row. For the week ending on October 13, New York sportsbooks finished with a win rate under 5%. The following week it was under 2%, their lowest non-Super Bowl week in NY.
The lack of revenue for the New York Sportsbook in October was due to the high volume of wagers. College football and the NFL were in full swing during October while bettors were also betting on the Yankees in the World Series. At the end of October, the NBA kicked off the 2024-25 season. Leaving bettors with plenty of opportunities to wager on professional sports. The state’s 51% tax rate helped fill NY coffers with $88.9 million during October.
ESPN had a sluggish first full month of operation in October
Penn Entertainment is the parent company of ESPN BET. After a soft launch in September, the sportsbook had its first full month of operation in New York in October. Unfortunately, they had modest numbers compared to other markets in the industry, ESPN BET finished seventh among NY operators in October with a $40.8 million handle and $3.2 million in gross revenue.
BetRivers’ $45.8 million in handle and $3.5 million in gross revenue was slightly ahead of Penn’s figures last month. ESPN only finished ahead of Bally Bet and Resorts World Bet. They still need to establish themselves in the market before they can compete with the larger sportsbooks. Since going live in the last week of September, ESPN BET has generated $44.8 million in wagers and $3.34 million in revenue.
How did other NY sportsbooks fare in October?
During October 2024, FanDuel generated $907.6 million in wagers. That was up 15.7% month-over-month and 1.7% year-over-year. This was FanDuel’s second time with at least $900 million in wagers in New York. Their revenue of $98 million in September declined to $77.3 million in October. FanDuel had an 8.5% hold last month and it was their third time in 2024 with less than a 10% hold.
DraftKings has $813.7 million worth of wagers in October. That was their highest ever in New York. A 7.4% hold led to $58.9 million in revenue. It marked the sportsbooks’ sixth month they produced at least $50 million in profits.
