Louisiana sports bets increase in December

Louisiana has reported a $39.5m handle for its second month of sports betting.

US.- The Louisiana Gaming Control Board has reported that in December, the second month with in-person sports betting available in Louisiana, 11 retail sportsbooks generated $39.5m in wagers. The handle generated $4.38m in total revenue, leading to $438,000 in taxes at 10 per cent.

In November, Louisiana generated a sports betting handle of $27.6m, representing an increase of about 43 per cent month to month. Louisiana brought in close to $5.7m on those wagers.

At last week’s LGCB meeting, there was no update on mobile sports betting arriving in the state but LGCB chairman Ronnie Johns still hopes to launch in time for the Super Bowl on February 13 according to an interview with The Advocate.

Online sports betting will be taxed at 15 per cent. Six sportsbooks have already been approved for launch – DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, Betfred, and BetRivers.

Other gaming operators with existing retail sportsbooks will likely pursue mobile licences. The likely candidates include Penn National (Barstool Sportsbook), Churchill Downs (TwinSpires), and Boyd Gaming (Boyd Sportsbook). Louisiana will have as many as 41 distinct mobile sports betting operators, with each of the 20 gaming operations in the state permitted to partner with up to two sports betting skins.

See also: Louisiana takes $27.6m in handle in first month of sports betting