New York’s Mobile Sports Betting Total Edging Towards $5 Billion

Published: April 11, 2022
Author: Dean Carr
Last Updated: April 11, 2022

The New York sports betting market has made a flying start since opening in January and the latest figures released only further reinforce that fact.

Since mobile sports wagering was made legal on January 8, 2022, there have been just under $5 billion accepted in bets from residents according to the New York State Gaming Commission. The total handle currently stands at $4.994 billion.

Eight bookmakers were initially licensed to operate in the state: FanDuel, Caesars, DraftKings, BetMGM, PointsBet, BetRivers, WynnBET and Resorts World. BallyBet is also set to go live later this month to take the number of mobile sportsbooks up to nine in New York.

Although sports betting has been legal in-person at New York casinos since 2019, the addition of mobile gambling has proven to be extremely popular with New Yorkers.

It was recently revealed that three New York sportsbooks had surpassed a $1 billion handle this year, with FanDuel ($1.55 billion), Caesars ($1.14 billion) and DraftKings ($1.06 billion) taking the strongest hold of the mobile market in its infancy.

The upcoming sports schedule is also set to increase those handles even further. The NBA Playoffs will begin this month, while the MLB regular season is also due to get underway after the delay of the lockout.

In the former, there will be big betting interest in the Brooklyn Nets, who are set to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA’s play-in tournament after securing the seventh seed. They’re an eight-point favorite to win at Barclays Center with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving both healthy, which would then set up a first-round series against the Boston Celtics.

Defeat would leave them with the prospect of facing the Atlanta Hawks or Charlotte Hornets in a do-or-die game to play the first seed Miami Heat in the first round. However, after finishing as the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference last season, the New York Knicks have failed to make the Playoffs after finishing 11th this time around with a 37-45 record.