Touch Down, Nevada – State’s Sportsbooks Rake-in US$1 Billion, Again

According to latest figures, punters in the US state staked US$1.09 billion on sports bets in November (£803,544/€963,310).

This followed Nevada’s US$1.10 billion sports wagering handle in October – and was over 90 per cent up, like-for-like, on November, 2020.

The state’s November sports betting revenue, meantime, was numbered at US$72 million (£53m/€63.6m), after winnings had been honoured.

Covid-19 lockdowns and US pandemic travel bans hammered the world’s most famous gambling and entertainment destination.

But November action was boosted by the return of travellers and punters from many leading international countries, as coronavirus restrictions were eased across the nation.

Despite the tourist surge, the biggest driver, nonetheless, was undoubtedly mobile and iGaming action, which scored a betting handle of US$777.2 million (£572.95m/€686.86m) — approximately double the amount wagered at retail sites.

Unsurprisingly, American football—by some margin–was the most popular sport for betting.

Punters wagered US$558.6 million on the sport (£411.8m/€493.67m), with operators taking revenue of US$53.1million (£39.14m/€46.92m). Basketball followed with revenue of US$10.2 million (£7.5m/€9m).

Billion Dollar End Run:

Overall, total gaming revenue in Nevada in November hit US$1.32 billion (£973,100m/€1.16bn), up over 70 per cent, year-on-year, and just a little less than July’s record revenue of US$1.36 billion (£1bn/€1.2bn).

November was the ninth consecutive month in which Nevada’s gaming revenue exceeded US$1 billion.

Most of this—some US$859.9 million (£633.9m/€760m)–came from slots, with punters feeding the one-armed bandits with a staggering US$11.42 billion (£8.41bn/€10.09bn).

Games on the baize, for their part, contributed US$486.2 million (£358.4m/€429.7m) — up over 130 per cent, year-on-year, with Blackjack leading the cut, followed by Baccarat.

Revenue in Desert Queen Las Vegas, alone, came to US$1.16 billion (£855,150/€1.02bn), up over 80 per cent on November the previous year.

Once the only place you could bet on sports in America—sports gambling, hitherto controlled by organised crime, was legalized in the state in 1949, Nevada lost its sportsbook top spot to New Jersey in 2020.

But still it remains the most famous sports betting scene on the planet.

What goes down in Vegas–far from remaining confined to Vegas–has massive implications for the rest of the US market and is a bellwether for sports betting around the world.

With American Football now set for the post-season and that mega betting event otherwise known as the Super Bowl scheduled for Sunday, February 13, Nevada’s current, Covid-defying, sports betting surge looks set to continue its billion-dollar end run.