Regulated sports betting has always been part of the Nevada gaming market, but this year players are dropping a bit more on wagers than they have in years past. During October, those Nevada players (and visitors) dropped $1.1 billion on wagers and handed the state a record-breaking handle for the month.
As is the case in virtually every US sports betting market, football was the big draw for bettors across Nevada. Between wagers on college and professional football, Silver State players generated a $729.3 billion handle and $32.6 million in revenue. Baseball wagering came in a distant second with $4.2 million in revenue. By way of comparison, parlay cards brought in $4.3 million in revenue for the month.
As is also the case in the rest of the country, mobile wagering dominated the market with $703.8 million in wagers and $16.9 million in revenue. This comes despite Nevada’s plethora of luxurious and comfortable in-person sportsbooks.
All told, Nevada sports betting brought in $48.3 million worth of revenue to Nevada sports betting operators for the month. That’s up 14 percent from October 2020.
But sports betting wasn’t the only sector of the Nevada gaming market that was hopping in October. Across the state operators collectively generated $1.22 billion in revenue, a new record, during October. This is the eight straight month that Nevada casinos have generated $1 billion or more in a single month. That ties a record that was set back in 2007.
Gaming industry analysts are predicting that Nevada’s billion dollar gaming months are likely to be the new norm. Nevada Gaming Control Board Senior Economic Analyst Michael Lawton summed up the subject in the Nevada Independent saying, “Strong demand across markets, the continued rebound of leisure travel and the return of special events and entertainment continued to propel gaming win past 2019 levels.”