Virginia sports betting followed a similar trend as other U.S. jurisdictions in June: high hold, increased handle, and improved year-over-year profits.
Key takeaways
- Virginia’s June handle increased 15% compared to the same month in 2024.
- Helped by operator-friendly results from the NBA Finals and MLB, the 12.7% hold was the highest in three years.
- Wagering over the first six months was up 11% from the same period last year.
The Virginia Lottery reported Friday that online and retail sportsbooks generated $477.8 million in wagers, a 15% year-over-year increase. Gross revenue spiked 33.4% from June 2024 to $60.7 million in the latest month.
In a month the NBA Finals and MLB action dominated, a whopping 12.7% hold greatly helped Virginia sports betting operators, 2025's highest and the best win rate since September 2022. Virginia sportsbooks enjoyed a hold of at least 12% in three of the last six months.
12 of the Old Dominion State’s operators reported a net positive adjusted gross revenue, which reached $57.1 million. That led to $8.7 million in tax income for the commonwealth, which hauled in over $54 million for the year.
| June | Online | Retail |
|---|---|---|
| Sports betting handle | $472,780,185 | $5,068,348 |
| Adjusted gross revenue | $57,434,370 | ($327,616) |
Halfway home
Virginia’s online and retail sportsbooks generated over $3.6 billion in wagers at 2025's mid-point. That’s an 11% year-over-year increase from the $3.3 billion handle during the first six months of 2024.
$400.8 million in year-to-date gross revenue was up 18.5% from the same period in the previous year. Virginia’s operators needed a wagering increase to produce higher revenue. Improved profits also came because of a better hold. 2025's first six months yielded an 11.1% win rate vs. 10.3% from the previous year.
Casino revenue down
Virginia’s three in-person casinos produced their second sports betting loss in the last three months. Retail sportsbooks reported a $327,616 AGR loss from more $5.07 million in wagers.
Table games and slots helped land-based operators balance out the sports deficit with $78.5 million in AGR, but that total was down 8% from May. Caesars Virginia generated adjusted profits of $30.56 million, followed by Rivers Casino Portsmouth’s $26.5 million and Hard Rock Bristol’s $21.4 million. Those casinos paid out $14.1 million in taxes to the commonwealth.
