The Washington D.C. Office of Lottery and Gaming, along with D.C. Lottery, reported all-time monthly highs of $8.1 million in sports betting revenue and $58.1 million handle for September.
The OLG reported its numbers Tuesday, while D.C. Lottery had reported its monthly figures for GambetDC earlier. The access to mobile sports betting in the nation's capital increased dramatically over the summer after the Sports Wagering Amendment Act of 2024 was included in the District's budget for Fiscal Year 2025. The expansion took effect in mid-July, with FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars and BetMGM all available to D.C. bettors.
The $8.1 million in operator winnings smashed the previous record of $5.4 million established in May when FanDuel first entered the market operating on behalf of the D.C. Lottery. Sportsbooks thrived despite the Washington Commanders getting off to a 3-1 start behind rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. The Commanders were also 3-1 against the spread in September, highlighted by a 38-33 road upset at Cincinnati in Week 3 when they were 7.5-point underdogs.
September's handle was up 43.1% from August's short-lived record of $40.6 million, with such an increase expected due to the wider mobile availability and the start of the NFL and college football seasons. Handle and revenue were both more than four times higher than they were in September 2023.
With record revenue comes record tax receipts, and the district coffers saw an inflow of nearly $2 million for the month. D.C. is now taxing Class A operators FanDuel, BetMGM and Caesars at 20% and DraftKings — a Class C licensee as a standalone mobile operator — at 30%, leading to the notable bump in tax revenue.
Bettors Only Find Success Versus BetMGM
Running September Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state:
1 WASHINGTON DC $58.09M <-NEW
2 Maine $51.82M
3 West Virginia $46.39M
4 Montana $6.78M
5 TBD
6 TBD
7 TBD
8 TBD
9 TBD
10 TBD#SportsBettingX#GamblingX— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) October 8, 2024
Three of the district's four mobile operators posted holds of 14% or better, with Caesars leading the trio at 17.9%. That contributed to its first seven-figure monthly revenue haul since October 2022, as it claimed $36,500 above that amount while taking $5.8 million worth of bets.
FanDuel surpassed $4 million in revenue for the second time since being unleashed beyond Audi Field, totaling close to $4.4 million while notching a 14.4% win rate from a record $30.5 million handle. The start of football season provided a huge bump for DraftKings, as both revenue and handle more than doubled from August. The sportsbook reported $2.1 million in winnings, attaining a 14.1% hold from $14.9 million in wagers.
BetMGM was the only mobile book to struggle in September, finishing with a 5.9% hold after claiming $352,700 in revenue from almost $6 million wagered. Revenue was still up 23.7% compared to last year, as handle more than doubled. The amount of wagers placed almost doubled as well, surging from 50,700 to 110,900, the second-highest total in its history.
Year-to-Date Tax Figures Finally Showing Growth
The increase in tax rates for mobile sports betting operators finally showed the type of revenue the nation's capital had long sought when it legalized this form of gambling back in 2020.
September's receipts were $1.2 million more than the same month last year, and the $7.3 million in receipts through the first nine months of 2024 is running $1.1 million ahead of 2023.
Both revenue and handle have more than doubled over the first three quarters, with the $34 million in revenue up 155.8% and the $261.4 million handle marking an increase of 116.1%. The 13% hold attained by all operators for the year is more than two percentage points higher than 2023.
