The U.S.’s most lucrative sports betting market opened the New Year the same way it ended 2025: highly profitable.
Key Takeaways
- Empire State operators have produced five revenue weeks of over $70 million since Nov. 2.
- Wagering during the New Year’s holiday was down 4% compared to 2025.
- FanDuel and DraftKings both produced win rates over 11%.
The New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) reported on Thursday that the eight online sportsbooks combined to generate $74 million in gross revenue during the week ending Jan. 4, a 17% week-over-week increase and the third-highest ever recorded.
The latest weekly profit marks the eighth time in 10 periods that operators claimed at least $50 million, continuing a run of dominance over bettors that’s lasted for much of the last two months.
Before late 2025, New York operators had never produced a $70 million revenue week since wagering went live in January 2022. However, since Nov. 2, the weekly profit has exceeded that figure five times, with the latest massive haul coming on a 12.8% hold.
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Busy end to 2025
While the NYSGC has yet to release monthly figures, 2025 will undoubtedly be the most profitable December the Empire State has produced. The last two weeks, including a heavy Christmas wagering period, New Year’s college playoff and bowl games, and the last week of the NFL season, have produced $137.3 million alone. New York operators set an all-time weekly high with $81 million in gross revenue to begin December.
With so much football during the holiday week, along with NBA, NHL, and college basketball, New Yorkers wagered 7% more dollars than Christmas week, generating a $575.9 million handle during the period ending Jan. 4. That amount bet, however, was down 4% from the same week in 2025.
During the course of the NFL’s 18-week regular season, New York sports betting produced a $500 million handle in 17 periods. Last year, wagering crossed that mark just nine times.
Big boys eat
For the fifth time in 10 weeks, FanDuel surpassed $30 million of gross revenue in a week. The online operator used a massive 17.1% hold on a $200.6 million handle to generate $34.3 million in weekly profit, its highest since setting the New York record with $39.9 million during the period ending Dec. 7.
DraftKings generated an even higher handle, taking in over $203.6 million in wagers for the week. The latest period marked the seventh time since late October that DraftKings has generated over $200 million in wagers. A lesser, but still way above average, 11.2% win rate led to $22.8 million in revenue, a 15.7% week-over-week increase.
Highs and lows
Fanatics also had a big week. The online operator generated $7.3 million in revenue, its highest since the end of August, behind a 15.5% hold on a $47.1 million handle. Bettors continued to beat up on BetMGM, which produced a win rate below 6% for the third consecutive week. Its handle also dipped $10 million week-over-week.
New York’s remaining operators – Caesars, BetRivers, theScore Bet, and Bally Bet – all produced double-digit holds and experienced week-over-week revenue gains during the week ending Jan. 4.
