The four upstate commercial casinos in New York wrapped up the 2021 campaign by releasing their final yearly numbers via the New York State Gaming Commission on Friday.
Last year, Empire State bettors combined for $197.5 million wagered on sporting events at Rivers, del Lago, Resorts World and Tioga Downs. That resulted in $23.3 million in revenue for the casinos.
It’s obviously a monumental year for legal sports betting in New York. No doubt, this year should show even bigger — and even record-breaking — numbers.
How will NY online sports betting affect state revenue?
Fittingly, December 2021 marks the last full month in which New York only featured retail sports betting. Since Jan. 8, the Empire State has featured betting apps that went live in time for the NFL playoffs.
So how did NY casinos end 2021?
| Casino | 2021 Handle | 2021 Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Rivers | $88,634,478 | $10,168,691 |
| Del Lago | $58,865,220 | $7,724,982 |
| Resorts World | $35,352,079 | $3,489,059 |
| Tioga Downs | $14,624,886 | $1,938,416 |
| Total | $197.5 million | $23.3 million |
Of course, it’s possible that New York has already surpassed this total in less than a week in 2022, given the launch of NY online sports betting in the state.
It’s even possible — though less likely — that it has already surpassed its total sports wagering handle since 2019 ($363.5 million).
That’s based on the massive number of geolocation pings throughout the state — 17.2 million total over the weekend, according to GeoComply.
Now, some of those wagers likely came via promotions and bonuses offered by those NY sportsbooks. Still, given the palpable buzz in New York upon launch, it’s safe to see the Week 1 figures are going to be massive.
How sustainable will NY online sports betting be?
The question long-term will be how online sports betting sustains in NY after the initial promotions and other incentives die down.
But with a population of 20 million — about double that of New Jersey — the potential to become the No. 1 sports betting state in America seems pretty high right now.
New Jersey, by the way, just wrapped up its fourth consecutive month with over $1 billion in sports betting handle, closing out 2021 in grand style. But it’s believed that about 20% of that handle comes from New York, so we’ll see what happens moving forward.
DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars and BetRivers all launched Jan. 8, with BetMGM set to join them on Jan. 17. PointsBet is expected to follow shortly thereafter while Bally Bet may be delayed. There have been no timeline updates from WynnBet and Resorts World.
