Delaware Posts $17M Sports Betting Handle As BetRivers Debuts

The Delaware Lottery reported a sports betting handle of $17.1 million for January, its highest amount in over two years as BetRivers made an instant impact for the First State’s entrance into the mobile sports betting space.

Delaware’s handle for January was more than double the $8.5 million generated in the first month of 2023 and 93.3% higher than the $8.8 million worth of bets that closed out the year. The $2.9 million in gross revenue was up 23.1% compared to 12 months prior but also down 5.9% from December as retail sales — which are parlays — totaled $2.3 million. That was less than half of December’s $5.2 million handle and 29.2% lower than January 2023.

The state collected $1.1 million in tax revenue, down roughly $148,000 from last year as the Delaware Lottery’s share of receipts from the state’s three horse racing tracks that BetRivers operates through is substantially less than its retail sales.

How Delaware arrived at mobile betting

Delaware was the first state to launch sports wagering in June 2018, shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down PASPA. The First State, however, only authorized retail betting through the state lottery.

The novelty of availability wore off quickly as neighboring New Jersey added mobile sports betting later that summer, and fellow border state Pennsylvania did likewise in the summer of 2019 after taking its first bets in November 2018. Eventually, Delaware became surrounded by states and jurisdictions that launched sports betting with mobile reach; Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., were all legal by the end of 2021.

Handle in Delaware gradually ebbed to a low point of $2.3 million last July — its lightest in 68 months of wagering when not including those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Delaware Lottery accepted $65.3 million worth of wagers in 2023; New Jersey averaged $32.8 million daily last year.

Delaware finally authorized mobile sports betting last August when BetRivers won the contract to offer online casino gaming, another area of gaming that was flagging in Delaware because of the outsized presence of neighboring Pennsylvania and New Jersey. BetRivers had a soft launch in the final week of December before going fully live Jan. 3.

Huge upswing and shift in action

The launch of online sports betting caused the expected notable increase in the volume of wagering as well as a profound shift in the source of wagering. The Delaware Lottery did not break out online and retail wagering at Delaware Park, Bally’s Dover, and Harrington Racetrack, but the trio processed 698,209 bets — nearly 80% of the 877,000-plus made in January.

That is a stark reversal from the 25% of 572,000 wagers made statewide in December. It was more than double the previous high of 341,594 accepted in December 2019.

The three tracks combined to generate $14.8 million handle, their most since accepting $16.1 million worth of bets in December 2018 and fourth-highest all-time. Delaware Park accounted for the bulk of action with $10.1 million, a top-five total that was its first eight-figure monthly handle since December 2018.

Delaware Park claimed $801,000 in revenue while posting a 7.9% hold, while Harrington collected $264,000 thanks to an 8.5% win rate from $3.1 million handle. Bally’s Dover accounted for the balance — $129,000 in winnings from $1.6 million in bets placed for an 8.3% hold. The average wager through the three tracks was $21.22, down 28.6% compared to the previous January.