Arizona Earns Yearly Sports Betting Increase in July

The Arizona Department of Gaming July earnings report was finally released Tuesday, putting a cap on what was yet another slow summer month for the entirety of the U.S. legal sports betting industry.

Despite month-over-month drops in sports betting activity, the Arizona legal sports betting scene grew from July 2022, both in terms of overall handle and revenues generated.

$323.2 million in reported bets in July

Arizona sports betting reported $323.2 million in wagers during July 2023. That number represents a healthy drop from the $393.2 million in July, but a respectable 11.3% jump from the $290.5 million in July 2022.

July 2022 represented the only time since a broad and comprehensive legal sports betting platform was launched in September 2021 that bettors spent under $300 million in a given month with the state’s best sportsbooks.

Revenues climb off a decent hold rate

Arizona state sports betting operators reported $34.5 million in revenues off their $323.2 million July handle. It is a nice $7 million month-over-month spike from the $28.3 million in June and an even better $12 million year-over-year jump from the $22.66 million in July 2022.

A respectable nearly 11% hold for the state's best sports betting apps can be partially credited with the jump in sportsbook profits. Sportsbooks simply fared better against their wagering public in July. The hold rate was just 7.2% in June, and 7.8% in July of last year.

Just under $2.7 million in taxes was collected for needy state and local coffers off of July's sports betting revenues in Arizona. That's up from $1.63 million in June and nearly $1.5 million in July 2022.

FanDuel leads the way

The race to be the best Arizona sports betting app came down once again to two providers. FanDuel prevailed both in terms of overall handle and revenues.

FanDuel was responsible for $113.7 million of the overall $323.2 million Arizona July handle. They also led the way with $13.6 million in gross revenues, thanks to a sportsbook-friendly 12% hold.

DraftKings was second in the Grand Canyon State market with $102.4 million in bets and $10.2 million in revenues off of a 10% hold. BetMGM was third with $43.3 million in wagers and $5.9 million in revenues, while Caesars was fourth with $32.6 a million handle and just under $2.5 million in profits. Barstool Sportsbook rounded out the top-five with $8.9 million in July bets and about $659K in revenues.

Good news on the way

July proved to be the bottom for all sports betting sites in the U.S. market. The jurisdictions that have reported their August earnings so far have seen month-over-month increases in overall wagering activity. There is no reason to think that Arizona will buck that trend.

And then there's September and the start of the bread-and-butter NFL season. Last year, Arizona sportsbooks saw a $177 million handle jump between August and September. More of the same is expected this year.

Keep an eye on Arizona sportsbook promos with football season underway.