Arizona sports betting handle crossed $500m mark in January

Arizona has reported a record monthly handle of $563.7m for January, an increase of 12.9 per cent from December.

US.- Arizona’s sports betting market set a new state record in January with a handle of $563.7m, beating the previous record of $499.2m set in December by 12.9 per cent. January’s sports betting revenue also reached a new high at $19.6m, up 13.5 per cent from December’s $1.7m.

Arizona, which launched legal sports betting in September 2021, has become the eighth US state to accept more than $500m in bets in a month. On average, bettors wagered $18.2m each day in January, an increase from $16.1m per day in December.

Online sports betting also set a new handle record at $558.7m, up 13 per cent from December’s $494.5m. 

Eric Ramsey, analyst for the PlayUSA Network, said: “With an extra week of regular-season games and an expanded NFL playoff played over five weekends in January, the NFL schedule was kind to Arizona sportsbooks.

“Arizona’s quick ramp-up has been a function of great timing, local enthusiasm and an attractive regulatory framework that has appealed to nationally known sportsbook operators. Major operators have had nearly four years of practice launching new markets as legalisation has marched across the US, and Arizona has been a beneficiary of that know-how.”

DraftKings Sportsbook led the operators’ ranking in terms of handle in Arizona for the first month of 2022, taking in $173.1m in bets. It was followed by FanDuel ($153.9m); BetMGM ($120m), Caesars ($73.5m) and Penn Sports’ Barstool Sportsbook ($21.4m).

See also: Arizona Coyotes seeks sports betting law change for temporary stadium