West Virginia sees early betting boost

West Virginia took in more than $300,000 (£230,000/€260,000) in revenue during the first week of legal sports betting.

Figures released by the West Virginia Lottery Commission show that $320,600 was wagered at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races, which is partnered with William Hill.

West Virginia became the fifth state to introduce sports betting last month, enacting a law actually passed prior to the repeal of PASPA in May. Hollywood Casino and Hills began accepting bets on August 30, with a full launch two days later.

Betting is currently only available at the state’s five land-based venues, with online betting still unlawful. The Greenbrier casino has already partnered with FanDuel and is set to launch its own betting offering soon.

Operators must pay a renewal fee at $100,000 as well as a tax rate of 10% of revenue, with state coffers boosted by $29,500 so far.

Meanwhile, Delaware – another small state that was quick on the draw in allowing sports betting – has also released its latest figures.

The state of around one million residents took in around $7.7m in the month to August 26, which was slightly down on the prior month. In total it has seen $22.9m wagered since the first bets were placed on June 5, with just over $2m in revenue generated.

Delaware Park has taken more than $16m of the handle in the last three months. The state currently only allows land-based betting at its three casinos, with GVC Holdings’ Stadium Technology Group providing its platform to the trio.