The retail and online sportsbooks in Louisiana accepted $209.6 million in legal sports betting last month, a 15.8% drop compared to March.
The Gaming Enforcement Division of the Louisiana State Police also announced that the state’s online revenue took a larger hit, falling over 22%, to $20.3 million.
That being said, the online sports betting sites escaped the worst of April’s decline. Profits on the retail side saw the worst of it, losing 48.5% of March’s revenue.
The handle of the physical sportsbooks saw an 8-month low, the month before football season opened.
Promos dropping but still high
Ever since the NFL playoffs, sportsbook promotions have been on a steady decline, but compared to March and April 2022, 2023 has been good to bettors in the Pelican State.
March had a 212% year-over-year increase, while April saw a 126% jump. Together, those last two months had more promotions than March through December 2022 combined.
Basketball remains the top earners
Now that MLB is a full month in, its net earnings for the state’s online operators nearly tripled to $1.1 million, but despite the increase in activity, the NBA was Louisiana’s most profitable sport.
Basketball ended April in the green by $1.6 million, which was a significant drop from March (72.8%). On top of that, basketball’s betting revenue was the lowest since the season opener in October.
On the retail side, Louisiana bettors were much luckier when they stayed away from parlays. Baseball was the only specified sport where the books made money. Football, basketball, and soccer ended April in the red.
