Tough Month of March Reported for Nevada Underscoregs

The success of popular teams in the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball tournaments resulted in a disappointing win rate and a challenging month for Nevada sports betting apps and retail providers, including some of the top sportsbooks in the state.

Based on the Nevada Gaming Control Board March Report, the state saw a rise in March handle compared to the previous month, but a decrease compared to March 2023. Revenues experienced a significant decline both month-over-month and year-over-year, largely due to bettors outperforming sportsbooks and a lower March hold rate.

In March, basketball betting in Nevada was a significant disappointment for the sports betting industry. The success of bettors in football also led to continued payouts on Super Bowl wagers in March, as the public had heavily favored the NFL’s biggest game.

$784.4 million March handle

Nevada sportsbooks saw a surge in betting activity in March, with a total handle of $784.4 million driven by the excitement of the March Madness tournament. This marked a 10.1% increase from February’s handle of $712.6 million, but a 5.5% decrease from the previous year’s March handle of $829.8 million in 2023.

In March, Nevada’s sports betting sites contributed $507 million to the state’s total sports betting handle, with retail establishments making up the remaining amount. Mobile sports betting in Nevada saw a 4.6% decrease compared to the previous year, including a decline in usage for some popular sports betting apps.

Revenues down

Revenue in Nevada fell short of expectations in March, with profits proving to be a disappointment despite the typically lucrative March Madness period for sports betting providers in the state.

The reason behind the disappointing performance? A meager 3.8% win rate for Silver State sportsbooks.

State providers reported revenues of only $29.8 million in March, showing a 32.1% decrease from the $43.85 million reported in March 2023 when the hold rate was 5.3%.

This signifies a larger decrease in revenue compared to the $47.9 million in profits generated in February, when the win rate was 6.7%.

Basketball, typically a major source of revenue in March for Nevada’s top sportsbooks, was a contributing factor to the disappointing earnings this year. In 2020, T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas held regional games for the March Madness tournament, boosting profits. However, this year the arena did not host any games, impacting revenue negatively.

As a consequence, the March Madness tournament and basketball caused a decrease in overall betting activity on hoops, resulting in a disappointing 5.3% hold. This led to a significant 27.6% decline in March revenues from basketball betting compared to the previous year.

As previously stated, the Super Bowl victory in February had a direct impact on the revenues of Nevada sportsbooks in March. In total, Nevada sports betting apps and retail providers paid out $12.9 million in March as a result of wagers made during the Super Bowl in February.

Nevada sportsbooks had a low win rate for hockey in March, holding just 1.6% on puck action last month.