The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported sports wagering handle of just over $921.1 million for November on Thursday, with the amount a slight year-over-year decline that has bucked trends elsewhere for the month.
The Silver State’s handle was down 0.7% from the $927.9 million worth of accepted bets in November 2022. Entering the final month of 2023, the year’s $7.4 billion handle is 5.1% lower compared to the first 11 months of last year.
Despite a hold under 4.5%, the adjusted gross revenue of $41 million was 8.8% higher than last year. November was a return to normal of sorts for Nevada sportsbooks, which topped the industry standard hold of 7% in both October before being pulled below 5% for the third time in 2023.
Though handle is down, the year-to-date revenue of $422.3 million is up 8% from the same period last year. The 5.7% win rate is up seven-tenths of a percentage point and is roughly in line with the overall hold of 5.68% that Nevada sportsbooks have posted on close to $36.9 billion handle in all-time sports wagering since it became available on a state-by-state basis in 2018.
Nevada received $2.8 million in state taxes from sports betting last month, and the $28.5 million in state coffers this year is $2.1 million ahead of last year’s pace.
Where’s the billion-dollar handle? 6y2o5l
Running NOVEMBER Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state:
1 New York $2.12B
2 New Jersey $1.62B
3 Penn. $934.1M
4 NEVADA $921.2M
5 Mass. $654.4M
6 Michigan $584.1M
7 Maryland $550.7M
8 Tenn. $515.5M
9 Indiana $513.7M
10 Louisiana $356.5M#sportsbettingtwitter #GamblingTwitter
— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) December 28, 2023
Given the monthly record handles that have been posted across multiple states out east — $900 million for the first time — it seemed there would be a chance Nevada would claim its fifth $1 billion monthly handle and first since January 2022.
That did not come to , though, even with November’s handle being the second-largest of the year behind the $935.8 million generated in January. In-person betting continues to be a key driver of the Las Vegas experience, and the $296.6 million wagered at brick-and-mortar venues represented 32.2% of the overall handle and was up 3.6% compared to 2022. It also moved the 2023 retail handle total above $2.5 billion and the all-time in-person handle post-PASPA to above $10 billion.
That bump in handle did not translate to more revenue, with the hold spanning the state’s 177 venues plunging more than 5 percentage points from October to below 6.7%. Retail sportsbooks totaled $19.8 million in revenue, and the $209.3 million in overall winnings this year s for 49.6% of the total revenue.
Mobile bettors again had another solid month in limiting those betting apps to a 3.4% win rate on $624.6 million worth of wagers. Nevada’s online books still have not hit the industry standard of 7% in any month since the NGCB began providing those breakouts in 2020, and November’s hold was the eighth below 5% this year.
Bettors put it together for second November 3m34w
Running 2023 YTD Top 10 #SportsBetting handle (Nov. in CAPS)
1 NEW YORK $17.14B
2 NEW JERSEY $10.69B
3 Illinois $8.93B
4 NEVADA $7.42B
5 PENN. $6.76B
6 Ohio $5.98B
7 Arizona $5.17B
8 Virginia $4.32B
9 MASS. $4.31B
10 MICHIGAN ~$4.2B#sportsbettingtwitter #gamblingtwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) December 28, 2023
Football and basketball wagering dominated Nevada’s handle, with football topping $500 million for the third consecutive month and basketball betting increasing nearly five-fold from October to $254 million. The betting public fared quite well on those wagers, limiting sportsbooks to sub-5% holds in both sports for the second straight November.
Football revenue was down 23.3% compared to last November at $17.6 million, but that was also barely one-third of the $48.3 million claimed by operators in October. Basketball revenue was up 22.5% to $11.8 million, as the 4.7% hold was nearly one percentage point higher to help offset a 2.7% dip in handle.
The house fared well in the catch-all “other” category, which includes golf, tennis, soccer, boxing, MMA, and motorsports in Nevada. Operators claimed more than $6.4 million in winnings thanks to an 8.5% hold on $75.5 million handle. They also had a 9.8% win rate on hockey wagers, leading to $4.3 million in revenue.
Parlay wagering continued to be a hit-and-miss adventure with its limited handle in the state. The house was held to a 6.9% hold on $3 million worth of wagers, claiming $210,000 in winnings.
It was just the second time in 2023 the win rate was positive but below 34%. The betting public has come out ahead on parlays in four months this year, but operators have won $4.5 million while crafting a 31.4% hold.
