Rhode Island reports April’s sports betting revenue
The state reported that Rhode Island gamblers wagered US$17 million in sports bets in April.
US.- The Rhode Island Lottery, in charge of sports betting in the state, reported that gamblers bet US$17 million on sports in April. The figures are from bets placed at the state’s two casinos in Lincoln and Tiverton. The state also recently updated its revenue target for the next fiscal year and set it at US$22.7 million.
As casinos paid almost US$15 million on winning bets, it leaves them with approximately US$2 million in profit. This figure is the highest monthly total registered to date. Current regulations in the state establish that Rhode Island obtains 51% of the winnings after expenses are subtracted.
April results include bets from the NCAA Tournament championship game and the start of playoffs of both the NBA and NHL.
With April results in, gamblers have placed US$94 million in wagers in total so far since late November. Furthermore, it is estimated that approximately US$90.1 million were paid on winning bets.
A study shows that the market could underperform
A new study by Christiansen Capital Advisors showed that initial projections for sports betting revenue might have been off. It claims that sports betting won’t bring as much money as initially expected. The study estimates that sports betting would only bring in US$2.7 million for Rhode Island by the end of the current fiscal year in July. That number is considerably lower than the US$23.5 million that was predicted in initial estimations. It is also significantly lower than Governor Gina Raimondo’s projection of US$11.5 million.
Furthermore, the study also said that a new Taunton casino would also affect Rhode Island’s gaming revenue. If it opens on June 1, 2021, total gaming revenue in the state would fall by US$79.8 million. Thus, the state’s share would fall by US$37.3 million between fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2024.
