Bettors across New York have wagered a record $4.8 billion since the market launched on January 8th. The mobile sports betting capital has already contributed $163.6 million in state taxes that have been used to fund education and youth sports programs.
BetMGM’s Market in the Big Apple
Sportsbook operator BetMGM launched a week after BetRivers, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel launched during the opening week. According to Entain CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen, BetMGM’s market share is in line with the expectations the operator set out.
Nygaard-Andersen made comments on Entain’s first-quarter trading update last week. The sportsbook has an iGaming joint venture between Entain and MGM Resorts will host a business on May 12th.
FanDuel led all operators with the biggest handle in March. DraftKings and Caesars also secured the second and third positions as BetMGM came in fourth place that month.
Nygaard-Andersen stated that she isn’t worried about the market share in the Empire State. The week ending on March 27th, BetMGM had a market share of 8.4 percent for that week as it was good for the fourth place once again. However, the operator was significantly behind the other three other competitors. FanDuel (36.1%), Caesars (25.6%), and DraftKings (24.5%).
What is BetMGM’s Business Plan Moving Forward
BetMGM is treating its business venture in New York like any other state in the industry. Launching nine days after the market launch puts the performance “in line with expectations,” according to Nygaard-Andersen.
The sportsbook operator continues to cut the gap between its competitors each week. Promotional spending has helped while the others are cutting back on it. For example, for the week ending April 3rd, BetMGM had a market share of 11.8 percent compared to third place Ceasars which had a market share of 15.7 percent.
The sportsbook operator has seen growth from a year ago with the help of big events like the Super Bowl and March Madness. To put the numbers in perspective, the betting volume on the platform: the number of active users and first-time deposits have more than doubled compared to last year.
Entain reported that BetMGM has the second-best market share in sports betting, which showed 24 percent. On the other hand, the company had an industry-leading market share of 29 percent in iGaming.
As of right now, customer acquisition still has a high price tag and will continue to rise, especially during the start of the NFL season, according to Nygaard-Andersen.
Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. Wants to Expand the New York Sports Betting Market
Sen. Joe Addabo Jr. has been an advocate for expanding on what bettors across the state can bet on. He is exploring ways to add a provision for more betting markets like mobile betting on horse racing and betting kiosks at sporting venues. Caesars recently agreed with the New York Mets to become the franchise’s official sports betting partner.
Making major changes like allowing more sportsbooks and lowering the tax rate fizzled out of budget talks. He believes that preliminary talks covering these topics are too soon but thinks that a much simpler change can be made when the legislature adjourns on June 2nd.
Addabbo, along with Rep. J Gary Pretlow, hopes to repeal many of Cuomo’s limits and expand the sports betting market with the addition of iGaming. However, for now, they are looking to gain more support for the Senate bill.
