Delaware Park - horse racing

Delaware betting revenue hits $1.7m in January

Delaware’s sports betting revenue saw a slight year-on-year increase in January 2021.

According to the latest figures from the Delaware Lottery, bettors in the state of Delaware wagered $11.7m on sports in January.

January’s betting handle is up 33% on the $8.8m wagered in December 2020 and 28.6% on the $9.1m wagered in January 2020.

Meanwhile, sportsbooks in the state generated $1.7m in revenue in January, representing a 54.6% increase on the $1.1m generated in December.

Delaware bettors managed to win back $9.7m from the state’s sportsbooks in January after placing 262,672 bets.

How the sportsbooks performed

Looking closer at the figures, Delaware Park continued to dominate the market in January after processing $6.8m in bets and holding onto $990,649.

Harrington Raceway took second place in January after generating $403,584 in revenue from $2.6m in sports wagers.

Dover Downs took third place after processing $2.2m in bets and holding onto $330,183.

Is the state’s betting market beginning to recover?

Delaware’s betting market was hit incredibly hard by the coronavirus pandemic throughout 2020 but it looks as if the market may be starting its road to recovery.

Sportsbook operators were forced to suspend operations for more than four months between March and July due to state-wide restrictions intended to soften the impact of the virus.

As Delaware only permits in-person land-based sports betting and all venues in the state were closed for four months, bettors were unable to legally bet during the period.

Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway reopened their sportsbook facilities in July while the Delaware Park sportsbook reopened in August.

Sports betting handle continued to rise in January as coronavirus restrictions in the state were eased again.

Sports betting in Delaware

In June 2018, Delaware became one of the first US states to legalize and launch sports betting following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA).

When compared to other states, it could be argued that Delaware’s sports betting industry has been struggling. 

However, it’s important to remember that sports betting in Delaware is currently restricted to three land-based venues – Delaware Park, Harrington Raceway and Dover Downs.

On top of this, Delaware is one of the smallest states in the US and shares borders with New Jersey and Pennsylvania, two states that currently offer online and mobile sports wagering. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see sports fans in Delaware travel across state lines to take advantage of sign-up offers and mobile wagering in those states.

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