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After taking a slight tumble last month, recent data from the DC Lottery shows that sports betting in the Nation’s Capital is again trending up.
For March, the Lottery’s GamBetDC generated $6.5 million in sports betting handle, compared to $5.7 million in February. As a result, GamBetDC collected over $860,000 in gaming revenue for the month.
The most recent figures from the Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG) also show the $6.5 million in sports betting handle is up from the $6.2 million generated during the same period last year.
March 2023 sports betting numbers for DC
When dissecting March sports betting numbers, it’s easy to see that the Men’s and Women’s NCAA Tournaments played a significant role. Compared to February, sports betting in the nation’s capital was up in all three categories.
March figures include:
- Sports betting handle: $6.5 million
- Revenue: $860,921
- Number of bets: 216,293
February figures include:
- Sports betting handle: $5.7 million
- Revenue: $626,273
- Number of bets: 176,293 bets
January figures include:
- Sports betting handle: $8.7 million
- Revenue: $862,722
- Number of bets: 225,476 bets
Looking at the March YOY comparison, sports betting outperformed itself, generating slightly more revenue while betting handle remained relatively the same.
March 2022 figures:
- Amount played (handle): $6.2 million
- Revenue: $511,800
- Number of Bets: 197,190
DC sports betting year-to-date comparison
As for year-to-date, the lottery’s sports betting platform has generated over $41 million in handle off of 1,310,382 bets. For the fiscal year to date, DC sports betting has generated roughly $4.8 million in revenue.
Fiscal year-to-date figures:
- Amount played (handle): $41,513,129
- Amount won: $36,685,445
- Revenue: $4,827,684
- Number of bets: 1,310,382
Unfortunately, compared to FY 2022, GamBetDC has taken one step forward and two steps back.
- Amount played (handle): $31,630,441
- Amount won: $27,351,024
- Revenue: $4,279,417
- Number of bets: 960,277
DC’s responsible gambling funds are still locked away
DC sports betting law sets aside the first $200,000 in tax revenue each fiscal year for problem gambling purposes. However, the $600,000 collected through the end of fiscal 2022 on Sept. 3o, has been kept locked away.
Furthermore, according to DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, there are plans to cut the contributions altogether and redirect them to the district general fund.
Keith Whyte, the executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, said although $600,000 isn’t much for PG services, “it would have been a good start. I’m not sure that that $600,000 would have ever been enough to stand up a program, but it would have been a good start.”
According to Legal Sports Report, there is zero information on the DC Department of Behavioral Health‘s website about problem gambling services. “No one is going to seek help from your secret problem gambling program,” Whyte said.
