The Virginia Lottery released its report on sports wagering activity submitted by licensed operators for the month of July, the sixth full month of reporting since legal sports betting launched in Virginia on Jan. 21.
Between July 1 and July 31, 2021, Virginians wagered $161,901,955 (“handle”), representing a 31 percent decline from the previous month. This dip in wagering is consistent with similar declines seen in July in other jurisdictions across the U.S. offering sports betting.
Virginia bettors won a total of $141,936,399, for a combined 12.33 percent operators win percentage (“hold”). Virginia’s sports betting catalog of approved leagues and events continues to expand, and through the end of July, bettors have wagered a combined total of more than $1.48 billion on everything from baseball and tennis to basketball and the Olympics.
The seven licensed operators included in July’s reporting were Betfair Interactive US LLC (FanDuel) in partnership with the Washington Football Team, Crown Virginia Gaming LLC (Draft Kings), BetMGM LLC, Rivers Portsmouth Gaming LLC (Rivers Casino Portsmouth), Caesars Virginia LLC, WSI US, LLC (Wynn), and Unibet Interactive, Inc. A complete list of all approved operators can be found here, under the “approvals” tab.
State law places a 15 percent tax on sports betting activity based on each permit holder’s adjusted gross revenue (AGR), which is defined as total wagers minus total winnings and other authorized deductions. Virginia’s statute allows operators to deduct certain customer acquisition costs from AGR, and operators reported nearly $4.4 million in bonuses and free-play incentives in July:
Gross sports gaming revenues
- July 2021: $161,901,955
- Inception to Date: $1,488,982,602
Gross winnings
- July 2021: ($141,936,399)
- Inception to Date: ($1,361,996,150)
Bonuses and Promotions
- July 2021: ($4,375,872)
- Inception to Date: ($49,928,611)
Other deductions
- July 2021: ($2,898,664)
- Inception to Date: ($15,048,937)
AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue)
- July 2021: $12,691,020
- Inception to Date: $62,008,904
Four operators reported net positive AGR for July, and the associated tax collections are as follows:
Total Tax
- Monthly Taxes: $1,864,432.57
- Inception to Date: $9,695,482.27
General Fund Allocation
- Monthly Taxes: $1,817,821.76
- Inception to Date: $9,453,095.22
Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund Allocation
- Monthly Taxes: $46,610.81
- Inception to Date: $242,387.05
Of the state tax on sports betting AGR, the statute specifies 97.5 percent is to be deposited in the state’s General Fund and 2.5 percent is to be deposited into the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund administered by the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health.
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