Sports betting in Virginia is set to expand again as a new operator has been approved for a license. 888 Holdings recently announced that it was granted sports betting approval, and it should launch at some point in early 2022.
888 Holdings is the parent company of Sports Illustrated Sportsbook, and that has already become a popular option in the crowded sports betting scene. The SI Sportsbook first made its debut in Colorado in September, but expansion was always promised.
888 Holdings goes much deeper than the Sports Illustrated Sportsbook, though, as it is now the 8th state in which it has received a license. 888 is an international company that quickly targeted the United States when sports betting became a legal option.
Virginia is not one of the top-five biggest sports betting markets in the U.S. at this time, but it is trending in the right direction. Online sportsbooks first launched back in January, and there have been pretty significant growth since that time.
Here Comes Bally Bet
888 Holdings wasn’t the only major company to receive a sports betting license as this sports betting industry continues to grow. The Bally Bet Sportsbook just recently launched in Virginia as well, and this operator has a long history of success.
Bally Bet became the 10th online sports betting option in Virginia when it officially launched just days before Thanksgiving. This operator is also in Colorado and Iowa already, and it has been able to emerge as a leader in each market.
Bally Bet entered Virginia with a solid welcome offer to new customers, and it should pass up some other operators as time goes on.
Online Betting Carrying the Industry
There are currently just two states with online-only sports betting, and Virginia is one of those states. Tennessee is the other state that only has mobile options available, but Virginia should leave this group of states in 2022.
A gaming expansion package was passed in Virginia back in 2020, which allowed sports betting to become legal. This bill also called for building five casino properties in economically challenged cities.
Even when retail sports betting starts, most of the betting is still expected to come from online sportsbooks.
State Records Continue to Fall
The October sports betting handle for Virginia was $304.1 million, which easily set a new record in the state. September saw a total handle of $293.3 million, and the overall numbers continue to trend in a positive direction.
Virginia also set a new national record as it became the quickest state to go over the $2 billion mark in the total betting handle. This is more impressive because there were limited options for most of the first year, and there aren’t any retail options.
For September, the gross gaming revenue did not set a new start record, but sportsbooks still brought in more than $30 million in revenue.
