Nevada Gets Mixed News with October Sports Betting Report

Nevada, the pioneer of legal sports betting, recently published its October revenue report, showcasing a mix of positive trends and potential concerns for state regulators.

In Nevada, revenue from sports betting apps and retail providers reached the third-highest total on record for a single month.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board report states that in October, Nevada surpassed $2 billion in adjusted gross revenues since the Supreme Court lifted its ban on sports betting in 2018. Nevada becomes the fifth state to achieve this milestone, following New Jersey, New York, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.

State providers have now surpassed $60 million in revenues for two consecutive months for the first time in October.

However, the positive news was dampened by the fact that handle numbers decreased year-over-year for the second consecutive October.

Nevada’s $815.7-million October handle

In October, bettors in Nevada wagered a total of $815.7 million at the state’s top sportsbooks, showing a small increase compared to the $811.4 million bet in September. However, for the second consecutive October, there was a decrease in overall betting activity.

In October, the total amount of $815.7 million was 11.5% less than the $920.9 million from October 2022 and significantly lower than the state record handle of $1.1 million reported in October 2021.

Up to this point, the total amount wagered on sports betting in Nevada for the year is $6.5 billion, which is 5.7% less than the betting activity in the state during the first 10 months of 2022.

Revenue is a different story

The top sports betting websites in Nevada earned $68.1 million in revenue in October, despite a lower than expected legal sports betting handle. This marks the third-highest monthly revenue for Nevada sports betting platforms, following the record $72 million in November 2022 and $70.6 million in September 2022.

In October, Nevada’s sports betting revenues increased by nearly $6 million, representing a 9.3% month-over-month growth from the $62.3 million recorded in September. This is also a 20% improvement from the $56.86 million reported in October 2022.

Nevada sportsbooks were able to achieve high revenues despite a low handle due to their impressive 8.4% hold in October, making it the sixth-highest win rate for Nevada sportsbooks.

In October, Silver State sportsbooks exceeded the national average of 7% for the first time since the fall of 2021.

Nevada collected approximately $4.6 million in taxes from net gaming revenues in October, bringing the year-to-date tax total to $25.7 million. This amount is nearly $2 million higher than the total collected at the same time last year.

Football provides touchdown for Nevada operators

It came as no shock that football was the main source of revenue for Nevada’s top sports betting sites. With an impressive 8.8% hold rate, pigskin action brought in $48.3 million out of the total $68.1 million revenue for state sportsbooks.

Football betting revenues increased by over 44% compared to the previous year.

In October, baseball betting revenue in Nevada was just under $9.5 million, making it the second highest revenue generator for sports betting providers. The combined hold for baseball betting was an impressive 10.5%.

In October, sports other than basketball and hockey brought in $3.5 million in revenue. The NBA season kickoff alone contributed $3.1 million, while hockey games generated $2.2 million in sportsbook revenue for the month.