The Virginia Lottery completed its first full year of sports wagering by suring $3 billion in handle, according to figures released Tuesday for the month of December.
The state agency reported just shy of $426.6 million wagered in the final month of 2021, narrowly missing its record of launching in late January with four operators and currently allowing 11 to conduct digital wagering.
Running Top 10 December #SportsBetting handle by state:
1 New Jersey: $1.23B
2 Nevada: $1.01B
3 Pennsylvania: $750.39M
4 Michigan: $514.63M
5 Indiana: $463M
6 Colorado: $461.4M
7 VIRGINIA: $426.6M
8 Tennessee: $341.8M
9 Iowa: $266.5M
10 Connecticut: $150.07M#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) February 1, 2022
Operators in Virginia avoided a rough month that befell practically every other state in December, claiming $31.5 million in gross revenue for a 7.4% hold. That win rate is more than two full percentage points above the current national mark for December, which Virginia pushed back above 5% with only Illinois and Arizona yet to report.
The $31.5 million in gross revenue marked the fourth straight month the figure was above $30 million, but it was also 34.8% lower than November’s record haul of $48.3 million, which came on the strength of a 12% win rate. Operators finished their first year with $285.9 million in gross revenue, posting an 8.9% hold that will be at least one full percentage point above the 2021 national average.
Promotional revenue was also substantial at just over $17 million, the fourth consecutive month it reached eight figures and the sixth time it was at least $10 million in 2021. It was also just shy of the all-time high of $17.4 million in September, and December’s amount — plus other deductions that totaled $4.3 million — left the state with just $10.1 million in adjusted gross revenue eligible to be taxed.
Tax receipts totaling more than $1.7 million, coming from just four of the operators, for the final month of the year pushed the total over $20.3 million. (The Virginia Lottery does not disclose handle and revenue information either by operator or by sport in its monthly reports.) Overall, the state taxed nearly $130.9 million of operator revenue in the first year of sports betting, approximately 45.8% of the overall gross revenue.
The notable discrepancy between adjusted revenue and gross revenue was not lost on lawmakers, with Del. Mark Sickles bonuses and promotions from taxable revenue after their first 12 months of wagering activity.
