Monthly sports betting handle in North Carolina reached a record $685 million (£536.2 million/€624.6 million) in March, although revenue fell for the second consecutive month.
Total spend surpassed the prior record of $659.3 million, set in March last year, by 3.9%. Incidentally, March 2024 was the first month of legal online sports betting in North Carolina.
The sportsbooks’ handle also beat the $526 million bet in February this year by 30.2%, the North Carolina State Lottery Commission reports.
In total, $667.1 million of the amount bet in March was listed as “paid wagering revenue”. The other $17.9 million was reported as “promotional” revenue.
Betting revenue falls again in March
The commission noted $3.2 million in voided and cancelled bets, while players won $643.7 million back from betting.
As such, this left $38.1 million in gross wagering revenue. Not only is this 42.7% less than March 2024 but also 31.6% behind February, making it North Carolina’s third-lowest monthly amount on record.
This resulted in a monthly hold of 5.78%, while the state collected an estimated $6.9 million in sports betting tax.
The commission does not publish a full breakdown of monthly operator performance. Eight online operators are currently active in North Carolina, with FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Fanatics among them.
