Virginia reports $427m in sports bets for October
The state reported a record handle, up 45.4 per cent month-on-month.
US.- Virginia’s sports betting volume reached $427.3m in October, setting a new state record. The total makes Virginia the quickest US state to reach $2bn in lifetime wagers. The handle easily broke the previous record of $304.1m set in March and represents an increase of 45.4 per cent from $293.9m in September
The record month was boosted by a sports calendar that included five weekends of football, the opening of the NBA season and baseball’s postseason. Figures from the Virginia Lottery show betting volume rose to $13.8m per day over the 31 days of October, up from $9.8m in September.
Gross gaming revenue slipped 2.5 per cent to $30.2m, down from a record $30.9m in September.
Dann Stupp, lead analyst for PlayVirginia.com said: “With a calendar that included an extra weekend of NFL and college football, the opening of the NBA and NHL seasons, and baseball’s postseason, October was the best opportunity so far for Virginia sportsbooks and the results did not disappoint.
“A strong start to the football season shows a maturing market with an increasing number of operators launching and a base of bettors that are increasingly comfortable with online sports betting.”
Eric Ramsey, an analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network, added: “It’s hard to imagine a better start for Virginia’s sports betting industry. The brisk action over the last two months is raising the bar for the entire market, too. Not only are more Virginians betting, but they are expanding their interest in less conventional wagers such as in-game betting.”
See also: Virginia Lottery pays out $1bn to online players in first 16 months
