The 11% increase in betting handle is likely attributed to the start of the NCAA college football season, and the NFL preseason was also a likely culprit for the rise in August wagers.
The 16 Arizona sportsbooks earned $20.5 million in revenue on an 8.6% hold rate, and the bookmakers paid $2.1 million in taxes to the ADG for the pleasure of operating in the state.
Wide Golf Between Big Four and the Other 13 Sportsbooks
Arizona has 16 sportsbooks operating in the state. Of those 16, only FanDuel Sportsbook, DraftKings Sportsbook, Caesars Sportsbook, and BetMGM Sportsbook have handled $1 billion in wagers since September 2021.
That trend didn’t change during August. DraftKings Arizona led the way with $115.5 million in sports betting handle, followed by FanDuel ($115), BetMGM ($50.4), Caesars ($33.6), and Desert Diamond Mobile rounded out the top five online apps with $15.3 million.
FanDuel generated the most revenue, with $9.1 million in reported earnings. DraftKings earned $6.3 million, BetMGM ($2.6), and Caesars ($1.8) were the only bookies to generate at least $1 million in August revenue.
Mobile betting operators Bally Interactive, Desert Diamond, Rush Street, and Sahara Bets failed to generate any income for August.
Promotional Bonus Bets Rise During August
Part of the reason for the rise in betting handle was a rise in Arizona bonus bets and promotional bonuses. The state’s 16 bookmakers doled out $24 million in freebies during August, up from the $2.7 million handed out during July.
DraftKings led the way with $3.1 million, while FanDuel ($3 million) and BetMGM ($2.3 million) were the only bookmakers to give out over $1 million on promos. Only five of the 16 sportsbook companies failed to report any promotional spending (Bally Interactive, Churchill Downs/TwinSpires, Golden Nugget, Barstool, and Rush Street).
What Does This Mean for Arizona Sports Bettors?
August was a better month than July, but it was only better for roughly five sportsbooks while the other dozen are still trying to figure things out. A full September of NFL and NCAA football will paint a truer picture of which sportsbooks will flourish and which will fade into the sunset.
Arizona sports bettors won more money from the sportsbooks during August than it did during July, but the 8.6 % hold rate was only slightly higher than the 8.2% average since 2021.
Four sportsbooks failed to generate any August revenue. That is troubling, to say the least, and we continue to wonder how much longer some of these companies will remain in business.
