West Virginia online casinos had an incredible month in November, taking more than $72 million in bets and $2 million in revenue.
This was a record performance for the mobile betting apps in the Mountain State. After their online handle was around $53 million in October, WV online casinos saw a 37% boost the following month.
November is now the best month in the state’s short history with online casinos. The previous record was set in September, with slightly over $61 million in wagers.
Not only did online casinos have a better showing in this most recent revenue report, every week was an improvement over October.
More on WV online casinos in November
Online casinos accepted at least $16 million in each week of November, while their best showing last month was around $15 million.
The combination of DraftKings Casino WV and BetMGM Casino WV also set a new best for weekly online handle twice during this time.
They narrowly beat the previous mark set the week of Oct. 3, with about $17.6 million for Nov. 14. This figure was then blown out of the water, as online wagering exceeded $22 million for the week ending Nov. 28.
DraftKings Casino was responsible for about $44 million of the total handle. This represents 61% of the online casino bets in the state.
BetMGM Casino’s handle fell just shy of $29 million.
With the boost in betting figures comes an increase in revenue, as well. WV online casinos saw their best month in regards to making money, earning over $2 million during the month.
Their revenue hit at least $540,000 in each of the last three weeks.
The total earnings from November mean about $260,000 in funding for the state.
Let’s take a deeper look at last month’s online casino betting and examine how figures should continue to rise.
WV online casino: A closer look
Through the first five months since launching, WV online casino handle surpassed $268 million. The market is off to a great start, and is in position to grow much larger.
Both DraftKings and BetMGM had quality months in November.
Since DraftKings went live in the state first, it’s shown that it has a slight advantage thus far.
The online casino nearly topped $10 million in each week of the month. Its two lower weeks both were around $9.6 million in handle.
DraftKings then broke its own record of $12 million in weekly handle in the final week of the month. It took in almost $13.4 million in wagers for the week of Nov. 28.
While BetMGM didn’t match this production, it had a great month, too. The roughly $29 million it accepted was around $13 million more than in October.
BetMGM’s previous weekly handle had reached $6 million in only one week of the year before November, but was at least that much in every week of the month.
The Greenbrier’s online casino app set a new best for the week of Nov. 28, as well, totaling nearly $8.7 million in bets.
Positive trends
The fact that November was a better month overall than October is one thing; however, the trends from the previous few weeks are very encouraging.
It appears that more people are using WV’s online casinos, and this will probably continue.
With the holidays and colder weather here, residents in the state may feel more inclined to wager from the convenience of their homes, rather than travel to a retail casino.
It also helps that the current online casinos are in the process of updating their already extensive gaming libraries. By providing more games and new titles, even experienced bettors can find something to enjoy.
The WV market is expanding in the near future, too.
Golden Nugget will be releasing its online casino in WV at some point, following its recent partnership with The Greenbrier.
Online casino revenue
Typically, a higher betting handle equates to more revenue for WV online casinos. That held true for WV online casinos, as they did particularly well last month.
The $2 million in earnings was about $400,000 more than October, and $200,000 more than the previous best in September.
Online casinos have earned over $6.6 million in revenue since going live in the state. That means West Virginia will get about $835,000 for the state share.
Although DraftKings Casino accepted more online wagers, BetMGM was right on its heels in terms of revenue.
DraftKings earned slightly over $1.1 million, while BetMGM was right around $900,000.
Despite taking more than 60% of bets, DraftKings only saw about 56% of the earnings.
The state’s first online casino exceeded $200,000 in revenue in each week of November. DraftKings had its best performance the week ending Nov. 14, when it made over $340,000.
BetMGM’s revenue was at least $200,000 in three of the four weeks. In fact, its earnings increased throughout each week of the month. The online casino saw more than $270,000 in profits the week of Nov. 28.
Both online casino apps in the state are doing better than might have been anticipated. They have each brought in a minimum of six figures in revenue in 11 consecutive weeks.
While the market might become more diluted when Golden Nugget Casino and others eventually join, DraftKings and BetMGM are in a great position for long-term success.
With just two online casinos in the market, they should be able to acquire a large portion of the customer base within the state.
The longer it goes before another mobile app launches, the more control they both will get.
Based on how betting went in the previous month, odds seem likely that online casino wagering will be even bigger in December.
