As states finish their 2022 betting reports, Arizona has been one of the stronger places for a competitive legal sports betting market and the December breakdown shows it.
The Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) announced that the state’s 17 online sports betting sites and its retail operators reached $572.4 million in handle to end 2022.
Luckily for Arizona’s legislature, the state’s revenue barely took a hit, falling just .5%. This was thanks to a slight increase in hold percentage, November came in at 9% while December rose to 9.7%.
“December of 2022 was another strong month for Arizona sports betting, with over $73 million more dollars wagered when compared to the same month of 2021,” said Jackie Johnson, Director, ADG.
“This caps off a stellar first full calendar year of sports betting for the state, with over $6 billion wagered throughout 2022.”
Taxwise, sports betting in Arizona brought in $3.7 million, all of which goes to the state’s general fund. Since legalization Arizona has collected $35 million in taxes.
Arizona’s competitive market
As per usual, FanDuel and DraftKings top the list of operators in Arizona. Their joint handle (FanDuel’s $182 million and DraftKings' $171.9 million) is 62.5% of the entire online market. If you add BetMGM’s $94.2 million, the Top 3 sportsbooks make up a whopping 79%. The other 14 operators are fighting for the remaining 21%.
That being said, it looks like there's room for a competitive market. Eleven sportsbooks were profitable and a 12th would have been without their free bet deductions that the state allows before the tax bill is assessed. Furthermore, all 13 retail locations had a taxable profit in December.
