Arizona gamblers wager $5.4B, state makes $21M in 1st full year of legal sports betting
Oct 20, 2022, 2:19 PM
PHOENIX – Gamblers in Arizona wagered about $5.4 billion on events in the state’s first full year of legal sports betting, generating over $21 million in privilege fees, according to gaming reports.
Event wagering has been legal in Arizona since September 2021. The Arizona Department of Gaming released its monthly revenue report for August 2022 on Thursday, giving a full year of data for the first time.
State Gaming Director Ted Vogt called it a “strong start for the state’s new sports betting industry.”
The August report showed $361 million in bets, with $2.77 million going into the state coffers. It was third-highest fee amount of the 12-month period, behind $4.1 million in May 2022 and $3.2 million in November 2021.
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“I am excited to see such strong wagering figures for August,” Vogt said in a press release.
State fees are based on how much money the sportsbooks keep, not on wagering totals. Payouts and promotional credits are subtracted from the handle to calculate the adjusted gross figure. The state gets 8% of the retail (in-person) adjusted gross and 10% of the adjusted gross for mobile app betting.
The biggest event wagering month so far was March, when Arizona gamblers bet about $691 million while the NCAA basketball tournament was in full swing. The books paid the state about $1.9 million in privilege fees in March.
The lightest month was July, with $290.5 million wagered.
