Arizona became the ninth state in the post-PASPA period to exceed $2 billion in gross sports wagering income on Wednesday, with the Department of Gaming reporting $65.6 million in wins for February before federal excise taxes and promotional reductions.
It was the sixth-highest total in 42 months, dating back to September 2021, when the Grand Canyon State began collecting wagers. Arizona also fired another shot across Nevada’s bow in terms of being the top handle producer west of the Mississippi, with $699.7 million in accepted wagers for the fourth consecutive month, or a 9.8% rise from February 2024.
Wagering on Super Bowl LIX helped the state’s 14 mobile sportsbooks aggressively pursue gamblers, spending a total $24.9 million in promotional credits and prizes. That was actually down 0.8% from the previous February, although the total investment by operators since launch has surpassed $800 million.
The state was able to impose taxes on $39.8 million in adjusted gross income, rerouting approximately $4 million into its coffers using the 8% retail and 10% mobile tax rates.
The competition for No. 4 remains hot.
Arizona is an operator-friendly jurisdiction due to the allowable promotional deductions, and in recent months, Fanatics and bet365 have established themselves as a second tier behind the “Big 3” of FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM.
Fanatics is having a strong inaugural season, having surpassed the $50 million threshold in two consecutive months for the first time after accepting $50.1 million in wagers in February. While its advertising spending has averaged at least $1.3 million each month since moving to Arizona in April 2024, it only spent more than $2 million in September and October to capitalize on NFL wagering.
Courtesy:Â https://igamingexpert.com/, https://www.igbnorthamerica.com/, https://gamingamerica.com/news/
