Tennessee Sports Betting May Handle Posts $261.6M in Bets

Tennessee sports betting May handle brought in $261.6 million in total bets, reporting a 10.7% decline from April’s $292.8 million.

According to the recent report released by the Sports Wagering Advisory Council, the Volunteer State’s nine operators claimed over $27.3 million in gross revenue, thanks to a 10.4% win rate.

Of the $261.6 handle in May, Tennessee’s operators returned $234.2 million to the bettors after earning $23.8 million in adjusted gross income.

Operators dished out nearly $3.5 million in promotional credits and other deductions.

Despite the monthly drop in the handle, the state reported its best month of privilege earnings since January. The nation’s first online-only sports betting state collected nearly $4.8 million in total privilege tax.

Third-Highest Hold in 19 Months of Legal Wagering

Tennessee mobile operators managed to post little monthly gains for May, thanks to its third-highest hold in 19 months of legal sports betting in the state. It was also the first time since last November that the hold reached double figures.

The Volunteer State requires each mobile operator to maintain a 10% hold. Otherwise, they must make a payment to the state to make up for the difference. However, it is a challenging task to maintain that 10% hold, considering the industry standard is 7%.

So far, Tennessee has collected more than $60 million in taxes from legal sports betting and $22.8 million for the first five months of 2022. It is almost $7.2 million more than the state generated during the same period in 2021.

Tennessee sports betting launched its online-only operation on Nov. 1, 2020, becoming the first state with digital-only sports betting industry.

Tennessee Sports Betting Up 63% YOY

Despite Tennessee sports betting May handle was the lowest since September 2021, and the state has seen a nearly 63% increase in the year-over-year comparison. In May 2021, Tennessee’s seven mobile operators combined for $160.9 million in total bets.

The monthly declines, which started in April across the nation, hardly come as any surprise. However, the so-called summer slump is expected to engulf US sports betting until the football season in September returns to break its spell.

The SWAC does not reveal the numbers by individual operators or sports. However, the Tennessee sports betting handle has swelled to 75.2% to more than $1.6 billion in 2022.

The Volunteer State saw its best sports betting month in January, which brought a record $386 million amid the peak of NFL betting.

Gross revenue also witnessed a 67.1% increase to $138.2 million from the first five months of 2021.

The AGR of $114 million also represented a 46.1% rise compared to the last year.

More Competition Adds to Losses

Eight sportsbooks were processing the bets in April until Superbook Sports launched on April 27. May was the first month for the Nevada-based brand, which also operates a land-based location in Colorado.

The addition technically makes SuperBook the 13th approved operator in the Volunteer State. However, Bally Bet, Betly, and Fubo have not launched yet, while TwinSpires has decided not to renew its license.

So, the practically ninth addition increased players’ options, meaning more advertising on the part of the operators.

Tennessee sports betting May handle revealed reduced players’ engagement. Despite the overall fewer betting activity in May, the Tennessee bettors concluded last month with more losses than they reported in April.

The Volunteer State will likely see some more similar months with reduced wagering. July and August have traditionally been the slower months in the US before the regular football season returns in September.