SportsHandle: That was the week that was in US sports betting

SportsHandle and friends deliver another round-up of the week’s big developments in US sports betting.

Illinois Sports Betting Handle Surges To $434.6 Million For October

Aided by having all five of its mobile sports betting operators available online for the entire month for the first time since operators went live in March, the Illinois Gaming Board on Thursday announced a record handle of nearly $434.6 million in October.

The figure was 42.4% higher than the $305.2 million reported in September, when both PointsBet and William Hill launched operations mid-month. It was the biggest month-over-month percentage increase of any jurisdiction with legalized sports wagering that generated a minimum handle of $10 million, and the $129.3-million increase was the largest jump of any state from September to October.

Full story here.

NJ Sports Bettors Break Another Record With $931 Million Wagered In Single Month

New Jersey bettors (and some visitors, especially from New York) wagered a record $931.6 million at the state’s mobile sportsbooks as well as Atlantic City casinos and state racetracks in November, crushing the national record set a month earlier by nearly $130 million.

Operators, however, settled for almost $7 million less in joint sports betting revenue compared to the previous month, producing a hold of $50.6 million on that record handle — the third highest hold in New Jersey history, behind October and January 2020. Total NJ online casino revenue, at $91.8 million, was a mere second-best ever to October’s slightly higher figure.

Full story here.

Pennsylvania’s COVID-Era Rise In Online Sports Betting And Casino Play Comes To An End

The phenomenal growth of Pennsylvania’s sports betting industry finally ground to a halt in November, experiencing its first decline in the volume of wagers since major sports returned from COVID pandemic shutdowns.

The total handle of the 10 online and 14 retail sportsbooks last month amounted to $491.9 million, off 6.4% from October’s record $525.8 million, according to figures publicized Thursday morning by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

Full story here.

Barstool’s Dave Portnoy Might Be Pied Piper Of Sportsbook World

Say what you will about Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, the man has a way with words. For instance, take a recent video he posted on Dec. 8, in which he discussed, among other items, how he’s soon bringing his talents to Michigan.

“I’m getting ready to go to Michigan,” he said. “When Michigan says, ‘hey we’re open for business,’ I’m bringing my green hammers there and we’re gonna start cracking skulls.”

Full story here.

Penn National’s New QB Put All He Learned From Poker And Football Into A Challenging First Year

Six days ago, Penn National Gaming President and CEO Jay Snowden learned that two more of his casinos were about to be closed by a statewide Pennsylvania government order stemming from COVID-19.

As in Illinois, Michigan, and New Mexico, hundreds more of the young executive’s employees faced layoffs in shuttered properties ceasing to provide any revenue. For the second time this year, his first in charge of the company, Snowden was confronted with challenges none of his predecessors ever had to face.

Full story here.