Two weeks ago, New York marked exactly one year of legal mobile sports betting by announcing that it generated far more revenue than any other state.
Governor Hocul announced that “as of January 7, the total mobile sports betting handling reached $16,595,732,482.” More than 3.8 million unique player accounts have been created since launch, with over 1.2 billion transactions made, and over $1.5 billion in total wagers.
That $16.2 billion in annual handling (the amount of money wagered by bettors) set a benchmark for the industry, as did the $1.36 billion in total gross gaming revenue, and the $709 million in tax revenue.
New York mobile sportsbooks exceeded $1 billion in handling 10 of 12 months during 2022, including $1.62 billion in December. New Jersey was the next closest with $998.39 million in mobile handling.
In order to legalize mobile sports betting in New York, the nine operators allowed to handle bets agreed to a 51% tax rate, the highest in the country, as well as a one-time license fee of $25 million to gain access to the market. in NY. Now that the calendar year is over, it’s possible the state could lower the tax rate for these sportsbooks, but that seems unlikely given last year’s success.
Of the nine operators in New York, FanDuel was the leading sportsbook, leading all operators with a 40% market share for a total of $6.5 billion and a 48% revenue share of $650.5 million. “Big Four” operators FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars, and BetMGM combined for 93.3% of New York market share and 96% of revenue share in 2022.
So what does this all mean for New York?
According to Governor Hocul, for Fiscal Year 2023 (April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023) and annually thereafter, revenue from mobile sports betting will be distributed as follows: “$5 million to fund sports programs for underserved youth, $6 million to fund problem gambling education and treatment, with the majority remaining to fund educational assistance.”
At this time, it is not clear exactly how much the “remaining majority” is and how it will be used to fund educational assistance.
Robert Williams, Executive Director of the New York State Gaming Commission, said the commission is working with the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Support (OASAS) to help combat potential gambling disorders as the state moves into mobile sports betting. .
“The introduction of mobile sports betting is, to some, opening up New York to an ongoing scene of addiction,” Williams said at a New York State legislature hearing on Tuesday. “Research shows that disordered gambling has been a relatively stable phenomenon over the past 40 years despite an unprecedented increase in opportunities and access to gambling.”
Williams cited further research that countered the idea that problem gambling can only be combated through professional treatment. He pointed out that there are “many other avenues out of disordered gambling,” such as Gamblers Anonymous, which he suggested could benefit from increased funding with some of the new revenue.
He also stated that there is an increased prevalence of problem gambling among young people and although more research was needed into why this might be the case or how to prevent this from carrying on into adulthood, he stated that regulation of gambling advertising is essential. with the concerns of the Gambling Commission.
“We believe that the most prominent parts of the American Gaming Association’s code require that sports betting advertising and marketing not be designed to appeal primarily to those under the legal age by portraying characters or entertainment and music that portrays primarily for audiences under the legal age. . And no operator’s logos, trademarks or brand names should be used or licensed for use on clothing, toys, game equipment, or anything intended primarily for persons under the legal age for sports gambling.”
As New York continues to work out the policies to protect its citizens and use the funding as efficiently as possible, the state is moving full steam ahead with proposed increases in gaming opportunities.
State Assemblyman Gary Pretlow said he hopes to introduce bill language to allow betting on the future of individual player awards such as MVP, Coach of the Year, and Cy Young, which are not currently allowed in New York but are in New Jersey .
“I want to add more opportunities to get closer to what they do in (New) Jersey. There are too many bets you can’t make. I want to include those kinds of things.”
However, it seems unlikely that New York will end its ban on in-state college teams, in hopes that it will help reduce underage gambling.
Every Friday, the NYS Gaming Commission publishes weekly mobile sports betting reports from all of its operators online here.
