Its been close to two months since the sports betting industry in the Keystone State was launched and since then it has seen a plethora of positive developments. The number of bookmakers continues to grow and the revenue from operational sports betting operations has been quite impressive so far. For instance, in January, the number of venues offering sports betting in the state doubled and so did the amount of money that the was wagered on various sporting activities.
According to figures released last Friday, the six fledging sportsbooks in the Keystone State accumulated and aggregated revenue of $2.6 million and contributed a whopping $938,597 in tax revenue. This pooled revenue tally for the last month represented a 30 percent month-on-month increase. According to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the handle was also over 97 percent better off.
The Details
As it turns out, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board found that the gamblers in the state wagered $32 million at the venues that’s had approved for sports betting and one off-track betting parlor over the month of January. At the top of the list was Philadelphia-based SugarHouse Casino which managed to accumulate $10.8 million in bets and it was followed by Pittsburgh-based Rivers Casino which recorded receiving bets worth $9.5 million. Out of the mentioned amounts, both casinos made a combined $2.6 million with about $940,000 being channeled towards taxes.
Parx Casino’s satellite location, the South Philadelphia Turf Club and Harrahs, which went live in mid-January handled less than 1 million in bets. While the revenue report did not break down the bets made at each venue by sport, it was confirmed that the state sportsbooks had an average over a little more than 8 percent – this can be easily contrasted with the 12.5 percent on a handle of $16 million that was recorded in December.
The Pennsylvanian sports betting industry continues to grow and players can expect even more sports betting action once Presque Isle Downs in Erie and the Philadelphia-based Valley Forge Casino finally go live with their sports betting offerings. The launch dates of the two new sports betting casino projects are yet to be announced but they are expected to be operational in the next few months, at most.
Mobile Betting
While the numbers that have been posted by the state’s gaming regulator can be considered to be quite strong, they would have been significantly better had mobile sports betting been thrown into the mix. The state does intend to launch mobile sports betting offerings in the near future but for now, the major focus is on bringing the brick and mortar sports betting business as close to perfection as possible.
