Arizona Sports Betting Posts Record $691M for March

Arizona sports betting handle reached its all-time high of over $690 million in March, thanks to the NCAA Tournament.

According to the report released Monday by the Arizona Department of Gaming, the month closed the books on the first quarter, which brought in a whopping $1.74 billion in the handle.

March witnessed the best month for Arizona sportsbooks, which reported roughly $690.97 million in wagers. It is nearly a 40% increase in handle compared to the $491.7 million reported in February.

The previous state handle record was $563.7 million witnessed in January.

The Copper State launched its legal sports betting industry in September 2021.

It is the second time in three months in 2022 that Arizona sportsbooks accepted over one-half billion dollars in the handle and the sixth straight month of $450-plus handle.

Revenue Surged to 52% in March

Arizona sports betting revenue also surged by 52.4% to $37.2 million in March. However, heavy promotional spending among the operators brought down the taxable revenue to half – $18.7 million. The state of Arizona collected nearly $1.7 million in taxes from that amount.

The Copper State was the last to release its monthly report in March, which saw over $9.2 billion wagered across the nation. It is the second-highest national handle in the post-PASPA era, trailing only the $9.8 billion handle reported for January.

For March, gross sports betting revenue totaled $603 million – the third-highest behind November’s $723 million and January’s $648 million.

State taxes raised from the sports betting industry around the country totaled $118.5 million, with the New York’s mobile market accounting for almost half the total with $58.3 million. New York levies the highest and most controversial tax rate at $51.

DraftKings Leads Arizona Handle

DraftKings posted a record $230.2 million for March, becoming the first mobile sportsbooks in the Copper State to cross $1 billion in the overall handle. The Boston-based operator was able to do so after improving its handle percentage to 74.9% from February’s $131.6 million, wearing the crown again after a short rule of FanDuel.

FanDuel, however, led Arizona operators for the highest gross revenue – $12.9 million – for March.

BetMGM was the only other mobile operator to report eight figures in gross revenue with $10.3 million.

The four giant AZ sportsbooks – DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Caesars – accounted for nearly 94% of the $687.7 million wagered online in March.

Barstool Sportsbook was the only other operator to post an eight-figure handle in March. The Penn National Gaming-owned mobile sportsbooks took in $19.1 million in the peak month.

WynnBET was not far behind with a nearly $10 million handle for the same month.

Arizona Becomes Sixth-Largest Nationally in March

Arizona’s March handle of $691 million ranks it the sixth-largest sports betting market in the nation.

1. New York – $1.64 billion
2. New Jersey – $1.12 billion
3. Illinois – $971.3 million
4. Nevada – $863.2 million
5. Pennsylvania – $714.97 million
6. Arizona – $690.9 million

Interestingly, the newly launched Arizona market has eclipsed Colorado ($505.6 million), Michigan ($480 million), Indiana ($476.8 million), and Virginia ($469.5 million).

Ted Vogt, the director of the ADG, believes the March numbers suggest good things to come for wagering in the state.

He said he would look forward to seeing how the industry continues to develop as they finish out the first year of legal sports betting in the coming months.

The second quarterly is expected to be significantly slower as the US sports betting enters the summer slump. The so-called summer slump is marked by fewer sports activities in the nation, resulting in lower monthly handles. This phase traditionally continues until the regular football season kicks off in September.