Nevada continued to stand tall in the US sports betting landscape last month, reaching new handling records. The state’s revenue for this vertical also grew year-on-year, outdoing the growth of New Jersey once more.
A new high
Over the course of November, $614.9 million was wagered on sports. The previous record, set in March this year, was $596.8 million. This new highest amount represents a 2.9% increase on that figure.
Compared to November 2018, sports betting handle figures were also up by 5.7%. Meanwhile, the $31 million made in revenue this year is a 14.3% increase on the statistics from the same time period last year.
Popular sports
American football continued to be king for sports bettors in Nevada last month. $384.6m was wagered in this area, which was 62.6% of the state’s final figures. In second place for handle was basketball, which totalled $166.6m.
Of the millions wagered on American football, sportsbooks made just under $22.5m in revenue. This demonstrated a hold of 5.85%. Meanwhile, the hold for basketball was 4.89% and revenue totalled $8.149m.
Will technology be needed going forward?
Much of Nevada’s continued success in sports betting is due to the number of people who make gambling trips to Las Vegas. But going forward, the state might need to become more tech-savvy to stay ahead of the rest.
Mobile betting is permitted here, but the sign-up process is more complicated than in other parts of the country. And that might prove to be its Achilles heel going forward. This form of wagering has played a major role in New Jersey keeping hot on Nevada’s heels this year. In fact, over 86% of November’s $562.7m handle in the Garden state came from mobile.
Considering New York‘s complicated sports betting approach for now, New Jersey is well-poised for continued growth in 2020. So, it could become vital for Nevadan operators to make it easier for their offerings to be accessed via mobile.
