New York rakes in record $302.3m in tax from mobile sports betting in first six months

New York’s mobile sports wagering launch has brought in $302.3m in tax revenue in just six months, surpassing every other state and exceeding initial revenue projections, Governor Kathy Hochul has announced.

The tax revenue will now be reinvested in educational projects, youth sports and responsible gaming initiatives. Additionally, the state said it has collected $25m in licence fees from eight mobile sports wagering platform providers, totalling an additional $200m.

New York legalised mobile sports betting on January 8, 2022 and it allows nine operators to offer sports betting products.

DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars and Rush Street Interactive went live on day one in New York and have since been joined by BetMGM, PointsBet, WynnBet and Resorts World.

Bally Bet, the final operator in New York State, was authorised to accept wagers last week on 7 July.

“In just six months, New York has become a leader among states in implementing successful gaming policies, with hundreds of millions of dollars going to important programmes that will improve the lives of all New Yorkers,” said Governor Hochul.

“The recent launch of New York’s final sports wagering operator [Bally Bet] will provide key revenue for education, youth sports programmes, and problem gambling support.

“I look forward to continuing to enact responsible gaming policies that provide exciting entertainment for New Yorkers of legal age – all with important safeguards in place to help those who need it,” Governor Hochul added.

New York State Gaming Commission: “The numbers and timeline clearly indicate that New York’s model successfully harnessed the excitement of sports wagering and continues to maximise its potential.”

According to data in a press release from Governor’s Hochul’s office, Pennsylvania by comparison has collected $265.6m in sports wagering tax revenue between November 2018 and May 2022, while New Jersey has generated $237.1m over the same period.

In addition, New York is repeatedly exceeding its own tax revenue projections.

In January, New York State had forecast $249m in mobile sports wagering tax revenue, including $200m in already-collected licence fees, for the entire fiscal year (FY) 2022, while total collections were estimated to come in at $361m (including the $200 million in license fees).

But as of April, New York State projects $357m in FY 2023, $465m in FY 2024, $493m in FY 2025, $509m in FY 2026 and $518m in FY 2027.

New York State Gaming Commission executive director Robert Williams said: “Thanks to Governor Hochul’s leadership, New York State has established itself as the leader in sports wagering in only six months.

“The numbers and timeline clearly indicate that New York’s model successfully harnessed the excitement of sports wagering and continues to maximise its potential,” he added.

According to geolocation specialist GeoComply, more than 2.9 million unique player accounts have been created in New York since January, conducting nearly 707 million transactions.

June figures published by the New York State Gaming Commission show that FanDuel is the clear market leader in New York.

The Flutter-owned brand accounted for 57.5% of overall operator GGR in New York and 45% of total handle, which came in at a record low for the state despite exceeding the $1bn mark for the month.