The Nevada Gaming Control Board’s revenue summary for the month of July shows the lowest sportsbook handle in three years at $408.3 million.
It’s the lowest in since August 2019 if months impacted by the Coronavirus global pandemic are removed from observation.
Handle was down 14.8% month-over-month from $479.0 million in June 2023. Year-over-year, handle saw a reduction of 2.6% from $419.4 million in July 2022.
Meanwhile, Nevada’s recovered from a dismal 2.0% hold in June to record an above average 6.2% hold in July and thus saw revenue growth of from $9.5 million in June to $25.3 million. This represents month-over-month growth of 166.3%. Nevada mobile sports betting continues to be the driving force behind handle, accounting for 65.7% of all sports bets placed in July.
The only sport of the big three that turned a positive revenue figure for Nevada in July was Baseball, which took $20.0 million, with Basketball posting a $2.1 million loss and Football a $0.8 million loss. Hockey posted a $0.7 million loss, while products classified as ‘Other’ generated $8.8 million. Despite historically low handle, operators will be anticipating a huge upwards spike in handle with the NFL season merely days away.
The Venetian Resort revealed last week it has signed a multi-year naming rights partnership for its revamped sportsbook on its casino floor. Dubbed “Yahoo Sportsbook, powered by William Hill”, it has now reopened ahead of the launch of the NFL season.
The Nevada retail casino scene helped contribute to overall gaming revenue growth of 6.7% year-over-year, to $1.4 billion. Slot machines generated $890.8 million in revenue, with a 7.14% win rate for casinos.
Yesterday, PokerStars announced the return of the North American Poker Tour after it being shelved for 12 years following the infamous ‘Black Friday’ for NA poker. Poker revenue was $33.9 million for July, of which, based on industry assumptions, 50% is generated through online poker. Online poker is the only form of Nevada online gaming permitted by the state.