Sports betting in New York state began with some fanfare this summer after regulators gave the OK to sports wagering onsite at casinos. Sportsbooks opened at the four state-licensed upstate New York casinos, including the two in Central New York, as well as at the Oneida Nation’s three casinos. How are these sportsbooks doing in […]
Sports betting in New York state began with some fanfare this summer after regulators gave the OK to sports wagering onsite at casinos. Sportsbooks opened at the four state-licensed upstate New York casinos, including the two in Central New York, as well as at the Oneida Nation’s three casinos.
How are these sportsbooks doing in the early going? What do the revenue numbers show?
At Tioga Downs Casino Resort and del Lago Resort & Casino, the two CNY casinos for which state data is available, sports wagering has so far accounted for low single-digit percentages of the two casinos’ total gross gaming revenue (GGR). That’s according to statistics published by the New York State Gaming Commission.
GGR is defined simply as the amount that casino customers wager minus the amount they win. It’s a key metric used to gauge the performance of casinos.
The FanDuel Sportsbook at Tioga Downs Casino Resort in Nichols in Tioga County opened on July 19. In the first 11 weeks of operation, through the week ending Sept. 29, the sportsbook generated $373,807 in sports wagering gross gaming revenue, or an average of $33,982 per week, according to the State Gaming Commission’s weekly financial reports. That figure represents just over 2 percent of the more than $17.7 million total GGR taken in by the casino in the same period.
The sports-betting GGR at Tioga Downs has ranged from a low of $7,750 in its third week open to a high of $106,646 in the first week of September, coinciding with the opening of the NFL season.
The DraftKings Sportsbook at del Lago Resort & Casino in Tyre in Seneca County officially opened on Aug. 23 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony that included former Syracuse Orange and Philadelphia Eagles star quarterback Donovan McNabb. In its first 5 ½ weeks of operation, through Sept. 29, the sportsbook at del Lago produced $1.05 million in sports-wagering GGR, representing 5.4 percent of the more than $19.4 million total GGR in that period. Sports-wagering GGR at the Finger Lakes casino venue averaged nearly $194,000 per week for the five full weeks it was open. Full-week sports-betting GGR ranged from a low of $108,465 in the first week to a high of $297,488 in the week ending Sept. 29.
A del Lago spokesperson says Saturdays and Sundays at its DraftKings Sportsbook are “virtually standing room only” as betters place their college football and NFL bets in-person. That in turn generates increased food and beverage sales as the customers stay to watch the games, as well as additional betting at the casino’s slot machines, table games, and poker tables. The sportsbook has 50 employees, according to the spokesperson.
Brent Stevens, founder, chairman and CEO of Peninsula Pacific, now the sole owner of del Lago, says the “real opportunity” for growth in sports betting to benefit the state, del Lago, its customers, and its stakeholders is the state government greenlighting online and mobile sports betting. That will bring in sports wagers from customers who can’t or don’t want to make the drive to the casino to place bets in-person.
“We are very excited for and hope that we will see the opportunity to bring mobile sports betting online and to use our combined brands of del Lago and DraftKings and bring that opportunity to our customers throughout the state,” says Stevens.
The New York State Legislature this year did not pass legislation to permit online and mobile wagering as the Gaming Commission approved the rules to allow on-premise betting.