Virginia Rewrites Record Books Thanks to October Handle

Virginia becomes the latest state to reach sports betting records in the month of October.

Hardly a week goes by when a new record within the US legal sports betting industry isn't smashed. We can add Virginia to the parade of records being set, thanks to their incredible month of October.

Not only did Virginia shatter its own monthly handle record in October, but it also became the fastest US jurisdiction to surpass the $2 billion lifetime handle mark. With October's figures added in, according to the Virginia lottery, the state’s handle since launch reached $2.4 billion after just nine months of operation.

Checking Out the October Numbers

October was a good month for the Commonwealth of Virginia's legal sports betting scene. A total of $427.3 million in bets was taken in by Virginia sportsbooks. That's an eye-opening 45.4% increase from the already-impressive sports betting take from September. October's numbers also bested the jurisdiction's previous record of $304.1 million by a whopping 40.5% or $123 million.

Operators reported $15.8 million in bonuses and promotions during October. That brings the adjusted gross revenues to $9.7 million for the month.

Revenues for Virginia sportsbooks came in at $30.2 million for October, thanks to a respectable 7.1% hold. Profit fell just short of the record $30.9 million in profits set in September.

An average of nearly $13.8 million was wagered in Virginia each of October's 31 days. $1.7 million in tax revenue came from Commonwealth's legal sports betting profits, bringing the lifetime tax contributions by sportsbooks to just over $14 million.

SEE ALSO: Ohio Moving Toward Legal Sports Betting in 2023

Where Does the National Handle Stands

With Virginia's October numbers in the books, the gravity of just how good the month of October was for the country's sportsbooks has come into focus. We are still waiting, as always on Illinois for their October numbers and the new betting jurisdiction of Arizona is lagging behind on their reports.

October's sports betting handle sits at $6.225 billion, a huge spike from the then-record $5.2 billion reported in September. The betting total for Illinois in September was $596.5 million. We can assume, based on the number of October records that were set and the fact that there were five full weeks of NFL and college football action that Illinois should easily surpass the $600 million mark.

It means that the US national handle could approach, if not reach the $7 billion mark for October. These are incredible numbers that couldn’t have been predicted in 2018.

Looking Forward

We can expect more records to fall not only in Virginia but across the nation as we head into the dog days of the NFL season, as the NBA and NHL seasons continue, and as college basketball and football make contributions.

October saw Bally Bet join the Virginia legal sports betting family. November saw 888's Sports Illustrated Sportsbook, Betway, and PointsBet come to market. December could be the month that the last two sportsbooks that will make up a complete wagering family may be announced.

Virginia just proved that it has to be mentioned in the same category as the Heavyweight legal sports betting states. The next milestone for the Commonwealth to reach is the magical $500 million barriers for a single month. It could come as soon as November and will be under threat until at least March.