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Sports betting starts to rake in tax revenue in Arizona

DraftKings, FanDuel to stop taking bets in NY

By: Perla Shaheen

Posted

and last updated

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Sports betting is taking a running start in Arizona.

“With the new year coming on, NFL playoffs, march madness around the corner, college basketball hitting a full-swing before that, Arizona wildcats obviously top 5 team, it’s hard to believe it's going to go anywhere other than up in the first part of the year for sure,” said Christopher Boan, analyst at BetArizona.com.

When Arizona sports betting was first legalized last September, the state raked in $291 million in bets. That’s more money received in the first month of betting than any other state in the nation. Most recent data from the Arizona Department of Gaming shows numbers from November of last year. Notably, sports betting operators’ revenue went up by 200% from October.

“Sooner or later at some point once more operators come onto the scene, who knows, it could be up there with Nevada,” Boan said.

Also important is the increase in tax revenue. In the months of September and October most operators were offering free bets to lure in new customers. Those bets aren't taxable.

“Operators were able to write-off free bets and things like that as tax-free write-offs,” Boan said.

In November, there were less new customers, and more of the bets were taxable. As a result - tax revenue increased by 200%. The state received $3.2 million.

“I think in the next year, we’ll see 10 maybe 15 maybe even 20 million dollars a month in tax revenue for the state,” Boan said.

Analysts expect those numbers to jump in February, once all 18 licensed operators launch their betting platforms.