April proved to be a challenging month for online gambling in West Virginia, leading to declines across both online casinos and sports betting. This downturn, while anticipated, still poses difficulties for operators and players alike.
According to the West Virginia Lottery’s weekly reporting system, both online casino gaming and sports betting exhibited monthly drops compared to the previous year. The decline in sports betting was particularly pronounced, driven by its seasonal fluctuations, resulting in a significant decrease in both handle and revenue. The data reflects trends observed over 28-day periods, with reports concluding each Sunday.
Online Casinos Maintain Strong Growth Amidst Monthly Slide
Despite the overall decline in April, online casinos in West Virginia demonstrated resilience. Between April 2 and 29, the state’s seven online casinos recorded a combined handle of $326.8 million, marking a 4.8% drop from the previous month (March 5 to April 1). Players received $314.6 million back, translating to $12.1 million in revenue, which represents a decrease of 4.5% month-over-month.
However, a broader perspective reveals positive growth in the online casino sector. Year-over-year figures show a remarkable 62.8% increase in handle, up from $210.9 million in April 2022, while revenue saw a 58.2% rise from $8 million. The presence of enticing online casino bonuses in West Virginia likely contributed to this impressive growth.
This impressive performance has become a trend, as April marks the seventh consecutive month where iGaming handle has surpassed $300 million, with notable figures including:
- April: $326.8 million
- March: $343.3 million
- February: $367.6 million (state record)
- January: $320.5 million
- December: $308.2 million
- November: $311.2 million
- October: $317.1 million
Further growth potential exists as Hacksaw Gaming plans to launch as the eighth online sports betting operator in West Virginia later this year.
Charles Town and The Greenbrier Battle for Top Revenue Spot
Among West Virginia’s three land-based casinos hosting multiple iGaming operators, Hollywood Charles Town Casino (DraftKings Casino WV and PointsBet Casino WV) led the revenue rankings with $5.2 million, reflecting a modest increase of 1.6% from the previous month. It narrowly surpassed The Greenbrier (BetMGM Sportsbook WV and FanDuel Casino WV), which reported $5.1 million, down 10.1% month-over-month, despite taking in $33.3 million more in wagers. Charles Town’s handle was $126.5 million, down 13.2%, while The Greenbrier’s handle was $159.7 million, up 2.5%.
Mountaineer Casino (BetRivers WV and Caesars Casino WV) trailed behind, handling $40.6 million (a slight decrease of 0.6%) and generating $1.7 million in revenue, down 3.8% from the previous month.
Sports Betting Faces Seasonal Challenges
The sports betting market is currently in a lull, often referred to as the “dead zone,” until football season returns in September. In April, West Virginia sportsbooks handled approximately $38.5 million, returning $35.6 million to bettors, resulting in a low hold of 7.5% and revenue of just $2.8 million.
This performance represents a decline from March, which benefitted from heightened activity during the NCAA basketball tournament, particularly the Final Four matchups on March 31. Comparatively, February 26 to March 26 had a handle of $43.1 million, with a return of $38.8 million (9.9% hold), leading to $4.2 million in revenue. Notably, the subsequent four-week period (March 5 to April 1) yielded even lower totals, with a handle of $40.6 million and revenue of $3.6 million.
Despite the downturn, April’s sports betting handle did experience a year-over-year increase of 7.4% compared to $35.9 million, marking the first instance of year-over-year improvement in 2023. However, the revenue from April 2022, which stood at $3.1 million, still outperformed last month due to a higher hold percentage.
Dominance of Charles Town and The Greenbrier in Sports Betting
While all five West Virginia retail casinos host sportsbook partnerships, Charles Town and The Greenbrier dominate the market, accounting for nearly 93% of all sports wagers in April. Charles Town reclaimed its position as the top operator, with a handle of $20.1 million, up 5.2%. In contrast, The Greenbrier recorded a handle of $15.7 million, reflecting a significant decline of 21% month-over-month.
Despite handling more wagers, The Greenbrier returned only $13.9 million to bettors, resulting in $1.8 million in revenue, nearly double Charles Town’s $928,000 revenue, which was driven by $19.1 million in betting wins.
The remaining casinos faced steeper declines, with Mountaineer reporting a handle of $1.8 million (down 27.7%) and $43,000 in revenue (down 77.9%), while Mardi Gras and Wheeling recorded handles of $432,000 (down 48.2%) and $413,000 (down 48.1%), respectively.
Source : https://www.playwv.com/west-virginia-online-casinos-sportsbooks-revenue-down-april/