After two months of legalized sports betting in Washington D.C., the numbers are in and they’re very underwhelming to say the least. From the end of May until the end of July, D.C. took in $1.2 million dollars in total handle which produced at meager $237,000 dollars in tax revenue.
The current state of the gaming industry is concerning to all parties involved, which is why D.C. is quickly adding more sports betting opportunities to the region in the form of retail sportsbooks. As of now, these numbers released by the Washington D.C. Lottery are solely based on the lone sports betting app.
How D.C. Stacks Up With Other States
When you compare D.C.’s total handle to that of others states with legalized sports betting, the numbers look even worse.
Take for example Colorado, which has been offering sports betting for almost the same duration as D.C. They both launched legal sports betting in the month of May, but Colorado’s numbers blew away D.C. by a staggering amount.
Colorado saw total handles of $25 million in May and $38 million in June. The state brought in over $300,000 dollars in tax revenue for those months. And, they charge less of a tax rate tan D.C. does.
Some would argue that Colorado has over 5 million more residents than Washington D.C. and that’s a big part of why the handles are worlds apart. Yet, when you compare a smaller state like Rhode Island to D.C., they doubled the nation’s Capital with $2 million in June alone.
Iowa, not known for its entertainment or gambling lifestyle, took in handles of $12.7 million dollars in June and $22.9 million dollars in July. In fact, Iowa’s tax revenue of $2.8 million dollars was more than what Washington D.C. brought in with total wagers.
The comparisons get even worse when you put D.C. up to Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Both of these states are bringing in a few billion dollars in handles per year. Even Indiana in their first 10 months cracked $1 billion dollars in total handle.
Why Are D.C.’s Numbers So Low Compared to Other States?
For those outside of D.C., you might be wondering why the numbers are so low. It’s actually a very simple reason as there’s only one sportsbook currently available and it’s in the form of an app – GamebetDC.
Industry analyst, Sara Slane, head of sports gaming consulting firm Slane Advisory, points to the fact that there is a monopoly in the state and that the app by Intralot had very unappealing odds:
“Because it is really much more of a monopoly, the odds that were being offered to consumers were not terribly appealing for them to want to place a bet. I just think it’s been a lackluster experience so far and hasn’t really attracted the demand the city was hoping would be created.”
The fact that Intralot’s GamebetDC app was met with so much disdain early on, certainly hurt the overall numbers for the industry. The initial issues were due to the app’s poor interface and betting odds that were far off from other sportsbooks in neighboring states and Las Vegas.
Is There Hope For D.C.’s Fledgling Sports Betting Industry?
All is not lost for Washington D.C. and their sports betting industry. For starters, all of the major professional sports leagues are up and running. MLB, NHL, NBA and MLS have all returned to action. Furthermore, the NFL is set to begin its season in four weeks.
The more available sports to wager on will definitely help inspire bettors to participate. Still, the biggest shot in the arm for Washington D.C. is that the region will have a brick and mortar sportsbook opened up at Capital One Arena.
The plan is to do a soft launch at the ticket office area this week as they work on building a new sportsbook inside the arena. This definitely will help boost D.C.’s anemic industry as it provides not only an option for bettors, but an environment where they can go to even when there’s no games at the arena.
However, even with this promising news, it’s highly doubtful that D.C. will hit their initial projections of $90+ million dollars over the next four years.
Rick Rockwell
As a longtime freelance writer, avid sports fan, former athlete, and experienced sports bettor, Rick Rockwell has risen up the ranks at GamblingSites.org to become the self-professed “King of the Blog” in his first year with the site. …
