November 2022 Virginia sports bets produced one sure-fire result — the state’s general fund won big again.
Sportsbooks generated a record $7.78 million in taxes for November, according to the latest Virginia Lottery report released on Friday. The tax amount exceeds the previous record of $7.3 million collected in September.
Credit policy changes for the record tax haul. After a one-year grace period, Virginia now taxes free sports bets and promo offers. The state used to out on revenue when companies use generous offers to attract first-time customers. But, lawmakers closed the tax loophole as part of the 2022 state budget. Virginia taxes sports betting profits at a 15% rate.
From November’s taxes on legal bets in Virginia:
- About $7.6 million went into the general fund.
- $194,566 went toward problem gambling.
The Virginia Department of Behavioral Health gets 2.5% of gaming profits for the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund.
November 2022 Virginia sports bets were flat, but still flirted with record levels
Customers placed $518.8 million in sports bets at the 13 Virginia sportsbooks in November.
The total is up 28.9% from the same month a year ago.
November’s new numbers are about 1.7% off the all-time mark, however. That came in October 2022, when sportsbooks took in a single-month record of $528 million.
The Virginia Lottery tells us eight of the state’s 13 sportsbooks turned in positive numbers once customer wins and authorized state deductions were factored in. A month ago, seven of the 13 sportsbooks reported a positive adjusted gross revenue.
The state allowed sportsbooks to claim about $3.9 million in deductions. Virginia’s newer sportsbooks were still able to claim $817,857 in bonuses and promo offers to customers.
Virginia sportsbooks won at higher levels
The house had a better November compared to October. Companies reported an 11.1% hold percentage in the just-released November numbers compared to 9.7% in October.
So, even though betting dollars (handle) was down just under 1.7% from October, adjusted gross revenue rose from $45.5 million to $52.8 million in the most recent totals.
