The first full month of NFL and college football produced a nice year-over-year 10% handle upswing in Empire State sports betting, but a mild win rate didn’t produce the kind of profits online operators were hoping for in September.
Key Takeaways
- A heavy sports betting month generated the first handle over $2.2 billion since May.
- No New York sportsbook enjoyed a double-digit hold in September.
- DraftKings had a huge handle, but FanDuel produced a bigger profit.
The New York Gaming Commission reported on Friday that bettors wagered $2.29 billion, the first handle over $2.2 billion since May, thanks to the first four weeks of the NFL regular season. Combined with the end of the MLB regular season, the amount bet in September was up 11.7% from August.
Gross revenue for New York online sportsbooks reached $193.7 million, the highest since June, but profits were down 6% compared to September 2024. Still, the Empire State hauled in $98.8 million in tax revenue.
Hold issue
No New York sports betting operator produced a double-digit hold. That doesn’t mean September was a bad month for sportsbooks; they just didn’t capitalize on the high handle.
The 8.4% hold ended a three-month streak of double-digit win rates. The latest hold is still well above the industry average of 7%, and no other U.S. state is likely to make over $190 million in gross revenue. However, in New York, that’s the second-lowest win rate in 2025.
Bettors had a solid start to the NFL season, but sportsbooks still had multiple good weeks as the month went along. MLB betting has been up in several U.S. states, with mixed results in terms of revenue.
Operator dips
| Online Operator | September Handle | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $870.6 million | $66.7 million |
| FanDuel | $790.4 million | $77.6 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $218 million | $20.4 million |
| Caesars | $152 million | $10.9 million |
| BetMGM | $149.8 million | $10.9 million |
DraftKings generated $870.6 million in wagers, a nearly $300-million month-over-month increase and its second-highest New York handle ever, behind March’s $912.1 million. September also marked the fourth time since October 2024 that DraftKings has produced a handle of over $800 million.
However, a 7.7% hold that’s closer to the industry average than what DraftKings has been producing recently led to $66.7 million in gross revenue, just an 8% month-over-month rise. FanDuel’s 9.8% hold on a $790.4-million handle led to a state-leading $77.6 million revenue haul in September, its highest monthly profit since June.
Fanatics Sportsbook generated more handle than FanDuel in August thanks to a single bettor who splurged in New York that month, but the online operator slid down to $218 million in wagers in September. Fanatics produced a 9.3% hold to make $20.4 million, a $4.4-million improvement over the previous month.
Caesars beat out BetMGM for fourth with a $152-million handle, but the two operators finished with similar revenue. ESPN BET and BetRivers both generated over $45 million in wagers during September, but the Rush Street Interactive platform produced a win rate under 6%, while ESPN BET reached 7.6%. Bally Bet’s $13-million September handle was its best ever in New York.
Bigger (and better) days ahead?
New York’s online operators that want to reverse their fortunes in October aren’t off to an especially promising start. The end of the previous month and the beginning of a new one led to just $30.2 million in gross revenue on a massive $591.7-million handle during the week ending Oct. 5.
One thing sportsbooks can count on is a heavy-volume fall month. The NFL, the bread and butter of sports betting, is in full swing. The MLB postseason is still going, the NHL is underway, and the NBA begins its season later this month.
Last year, New York generated $2.23 billion in wagers in October, the third-most all time behind January 2025 and March 2025.
