Just like last October, Virginia sports betting broke records in October 2023 handling over $570 million in bets from players making it the highest total for a single month.
On Friday, the Virginia Lottery released its monthly report on sports wagering activity of October 2023 submitted by licensed operators in the state. The Commonwealth currently has 16 mobile/online operators available in the state with three retail sportsbooks located at land-based casinos.
Between Oct. 1 and Oct. 31, bettors in Virginia wagered $571,354,817 on sports, 8.2% higher than last October ($528,029,938). From that $571 million in wagers, bettors won a total of $507,357,865.
After paying out winnings, allowable bonuses, promotions, and other deductions, Virginia sportsbooks, mobile and retail combined, were left with $56,364,083 in Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR), up 22% from October 2022 ($45,532,999).
Mobile sports betting made up the majority of the AGR at $55,562,588 with retail locations following with $801,495. The three retail sportsbooks in Virginia are Hard Rock Bet at Bristol Casino, BetRivers at Rivers Casino Portsmouth, and Caesars Sportsbook at Danville Casino.
State law places a 15% tax on sports betting activity based on each operator’s AGR. For October 2023, the Commonwealth of Virginia received $8,550,196.89 as a tax payment, up 22.9% from October 2022 ($6,956,643.04).
Mobile sports betting in Virginia was launched in January 2021 with FanDuel Sportsbook the first to go live. With 16 operators in the state today, the Virginia Lottery announced during its October board meeting that eight licensed sportsbooks in the state are up for renewal if they want to continue operating in the Commonwealth.
Eight Permit Holders Up for Renewal
- Betfair Interactive (FanDuel) – Jan. 19, 2024
- Crown Virginia Gaming, LLC (DraftKings) – Jan. 23, 2024
- BetMGM, LLC – Jan. 23, 2024
- Rivers Portsmouth Gaming, LLC – Jan. 25, 2024
- Caesars Virginia, LLC – Jan. 26, 2024
- Bally’s Interactive, LLC – March 14, 2024
- Penn Sports Interactive, LLC – March 14, 2024
- Unibet Interactive, Inc – April 20, 2024
“Failure to renew their registration will result in them not being able to conduct business in the Commonwealth with licensed permit holders,” the Virginia Lottery said.
Unibet Leaving U.S. And Canada Markets
Virginia’s sports betting market will be less one operator sometime in 2024 after Unibet Interactive’s parent company Kindred Group PLC announced this week they plan to leave the U.S. and Canadian gambling market.
Based in Valletta, Malta, Kindred is an online gambling operator with nine brands in the industry, Unibet being one.
As part of a strategic review, “Kindred Group will exit the North American market with the expectations to have fully exited operations in the market by the end of Q2 2024, subject to the regulatory process,” Kindred said in a company press release.
In addition, the company plans to take cost reduction initiatives, which include a reduction of over 300 employees and consultants during 2024. These cuts should save the company about $50 million a year, Kindred said.
The Unibet app and website are currently live in Arizona, Indiana, New Jersey, Ontario, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Last year the company pulled its sportsbook from Iowa so it could focus on states that provide iGaming.
Meanwhile, Kindred says Unibet has regained its position as the number one operator in the Netherlands and the company continues to deliver above-market growth in the U.K.
