Boom! West Virginia Sports Betting Handle Explodes For New Record High

Written By Chris Imperiale on December 18, 2019 - Last Updated on March 21, 2023
Sports betting in WV for Dec. 7

The West Virginia sports betting market had its most active week ever, accepting nearly $9.5 million in wagers. The week of Nov. 30 was the Mountain State’s best performance in terms of the overall betting handle by more than $1 million.

Both retail sportsbooks, as well as the online sports betting apps in WV, impressed with their best showings yet. Retail books took in over $4.9 million in bets, while the online sportsbooks combined for almost $4.6 million in handle.

After a delay in releasing the revenue report, the WV Lottery provided the betting figures for Nov. 30 as well as the week of Dec. 7.

Although sportsbooks didn’t do poorly, the betting handle did come back down to earth for Dec. 7. Online sportsbooks accepted over $3.7 million and retail took in nearly $4.2 million for a total of around $7.9 million.

As far as revenue figures are concerned, sportsbooks made a profit both weeks. They made over $500,000 for the week of Nov. 30 and around $475,000 for the following week.

Retail locations earned more for the first week, but the online apps won by a slight margin for the first week of December.

This week’s report includes activity from Nov. 24-30 as well as Dec. 1-7 from these WV sportsbooks:

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WV sports betting revenue highlights

The following are the key takeaways from the Nov. 30 and Dec. 7 figures:

  • WV online sportsbooks set a new record
  • WVU sports helped build handle
  • Retail’s handle wins again

It appeared that overall betting handle in WV might have plateaued after figures failed to reach $8 million again for the second straight week. WV Sportsbooks responded in a big way by accepting over $2 million more in bets than they did the previous week.

As mentioned, the $9.5 million surpassed the state’s prior best week by over $1.1 million. That record was set the week of Nov. 9 when the total handle reached $8.3 million.

The last week in November proved to be a very busy week for sports bettors in WV. With handle hitting the $9 million mark for the first time, it was the perfect WVU sports betting week for books.

WVU football played its last game of the season when it traveled to Fort Worth to battle the TCU Horned Frogs. Knowing that their team couldn’t qualify for a bowl, bettors knew this would be their last opportunity to bet on WVU this season.

The Mountaineers helped all of their backers by not only covering the 13.5-point spread, but by actually winning outright. They beat TCU 20-17 to finish the 2019 season at 5-7 overall.

WVU basketball also played a part in this massive handle. Its two games in the Cancun Classic garnered plenty of attention at sportsbooks, too. The Mountaineers were victorious here as well, beating Northern Iowa and Wichita State to claim the crown.

While online sports betting apps in WV had two solid weeks in terms of handle, they came up short in comparison with the retail locations. The land-based sportsbooks narrowly won both weeks, taking in around $770,000 more in bets in total.

Since accepting more wagers for two consecutive weeks, online sportsbooks have not exceeded retail’s handle for the last three weeks.

WV Sports Betting Summary

Here are the latest figures released by the WV Lottery Commission since WV sports betting revenue tracking began in August 2018:

  • Handle: $250,024,958.63
  • Revenue: $23,839,782.28
  • Taxes: $2,383,978.23

It was two busy weeks for sports betting in WV. Handle jumped up to $9,478,177.96, a 28% increase from the week prior. Action then settled down a bit the following week. Overall handle hit $7,914,297.96, a 17% decrease.

Revenue figures were much more even between the two weeks. After a slow week for Nov. 23, revenue jumped 657% as sportsbooks earned $518,596.22. Revenue then fell 9% when sportsbooks generated $472,313.07 for the week of Dec. 7.

WV sports betting revenue for the week ending Nov. 30, 2019

WV SportsbookOnline HandleRetail HandleTotal HandleOnline RevenueRetail RevenueTotal Revenue
Hollywood Sportsbook + DraftKings $2,494,568.38$3,394,430.26$5,888,998.64$159,880.50$320,349.16$480,229.66
The Greenbrier + FanDuel Sportsbook$2,081,144.32$382,544.25$2,463,688.57$45,163.11-$16,798.50$28,364.61
Mountaineer SportsbookN/A$1,125,490.75$1,125,490.75N/A$10,001.95$10,001.95
Wheeling Island SportsbookN/AN/AN/AN/AN/AN/A
Mardi Gras SportsbookN/AN/AN/AN/AN/AN/A
Total$4,575,712.70$4,902,465.26$9,478,177.96$205,043.61$313,552.61$518,596.22

WV sports betting revenue for the week ending Dec. 7, 2019

WV SportsbookOnline HandleRetail HandleTotal HandleOnline RevenueRetail RevenueTotal Revenue
Hollywood Sportsbook + DraftKings $2,041,838.77$3,076,767.86$5,118,606.63$157,612.38$172,871.35$330,483.73
The Greenbrier + FanDuel Sportsbook$1,693,917.54$216,611.50$1,910,529.04$80,414.00$24,731.75$105,145.75
Mountaineer SportsbookN/A$885,162.29$885,162.29N/A$36,700.74$36,700.74
Wheeling Island SportsbookN/AN/AN/AN/A-$17.15-$17.15
Mardi Gras SportsbookN/AN/AN/AN/AN/AN/A
Total$3,735,756.31$4,178,541.65$7,914,297.96$238,026.38$234,286.69$472,313.07

A Closer Look At WV Sports Betting Handle

Since this week’s report included two weeks of betting data, the rankings will be based on the total handle from both.

Hollywood Casino led the way with a very impressive two-week span. It accepted over $11 million in wagers, more than double any of its WV competition.

For the week of Nov. 30, its sportsbook set a new best with nearly $5.9 million in handle. This is Hollywood’s best week by about $500,000.

Both Hollywood’s retail book as well as its DraftKings mobile app set new records. Retail accepted almost $3.4 million while the online sportsbook took in around $2.5 million.

The following week Hollywood’s handle reduced, but not by much. It has reached at least $5 million in bets in four of the last five weeks.

The Greenbrier finished in second with more than $4.3 million. Though this wasn’t close to beating Hollywood, it was a quality two weeks for its sportsbook, too.

It accepted over $2.4 million in wagers for the week of Nov. 30. This total just about matched its best week ever from Nov. 9.

While The Greenbrier’s online platform, FanDuel, performed very well with over $2 million in handle, its retail sportsbook set its best mark with around $385,000.

The second week was almost as successful, with FanDuel around $1.7 million and the retail at $215,000.

Mountaineer Casino finished in third, topping $2 million overall. Its sportsbook also set a new high with more than $1.1 million for the first week. It followed that up with around $885,000 for the week of Dec. 7.

Here’s how the WV sportsbooks rank for weekly handle:

  1. Hollywood Casino ($11,007,605.30)
  2. The Greenbrier ($4,374,217.61)
  3. Mountaineer Casino ($2,010,653.04)
  4. Mardi Gras Casino ($0)
  5. Wheeling Island ($0)

WV sports betting handle for Nov. 30

A Closer Look At WV Sports Betting Revenue

Sportsbooks actually didn’t do that well in regards to generating revenue during these last two weeks. For the amount that the handle reached, revenue figures could have been much more notable.

Hollywood once again led all others with over $810,000. Its sportsbook earned around $480,000 the first week and then $330,000 for week two.

Although its retail sportsbook beat its DraftKings online app both weeks, each made at least six figures every time.

The Greenbrier was the runner-up with around $130,000. Its sportsbook surprisingly made only $28,000 the week its handle exceeded $2.4 million. This was its worst week in a month.

Its book recovered the next week, earning over $100,000. The large majority of The Greenbrier’s revenue comes from its FanDuel Sportsbook. The online app made over $125,00 the last two weeks.

Unfortunately, The Greenbrier’s retail location had two rough showings. It lost close to $17,000 on Nov. 30 and made just under $25,000 the following week.

Mountaineer finished in third with around $45,000 in revenue. Its sportsbook also struggled the last week of November, earning just $10,000 with a handle over $1.1 million.

For the week of Dec.7, it bounced back with almost $37,000. Mountaineer continues to fall behind the other active sportsbooks in the state because of its lack of a mobile betting app.

Both Mardi Gras and Wheeling Island are still closed, but Wheeling Island paid out around $20 worth of wagers.

Here’s how the WV sportsbooks rank for weekly revenue:

  1. Hollywood Casino ($810,713.39)
  2. The Greenbrier ($133,510.36)
  3. Mountaineer Casino ($46,702.69)
  4. Mardi Gras Casino ($0)
  5. Wheeling Island (-$17.15)

WV sports betting revenue for Nov. 30

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On the board for WV Sportsbooks

WVU Basketball

Even though the betting on college football’s regular season is over, the 2019 bowls are starting this week. Marshall football is preparing for its game next Monday in the Gasparilla Bowl.

The Thundering Herd are the underdogs in their matchup with the University of Central Florida. They’re receiving around 17 points from WV sportsbooks.

On the hardwood, the WVU Mountaineers have recovered nicely from their narrow defeat against St. John’s. They are now 9-1 overall and tied for the lead in the Big 12 Conference.

Thanks to its great start to the year, WVU was voted into this weeks AP Top 25 as the 25th best team in the nation. The Mountaineers have one more tune-up game prior to getting into the thick of their schedule.

The Mountaineers will look to continue their great play to start the season before things get a lot more difficult on the schedule. The boys from Morgantown travel to Youngstown State this Saturday, Dec. 21.

WVU should have another easy game on its hands as it is likely to be sizable favorites going against the Penguins. Although Youngstown State is only 6-5 on the season, it is undefeated at home.

The basketball team will then get a full week off for the holidays before returning to play.

NFL Week 16

The NFL betting season heads into its final two weeks with plenty to sort out in terms of the playoff picture. Although most of the local teams have had a difficult year, the Pittsburgh Steelers can still clinch a Wild Card berth in the AFC.

The following are the Week 16 odds according to both online sportsbooks, DraftKings and FanDuel:

Spread Total Moneyline
CLE vs BAL
DraftKings SportsbookCLE +1048CLE +380
BAL -455
FanDuel SportsbookCLE +1048CLE -370
BAL -470
PIT vs NYJ
DraftKingsPIT -338.5PIT -148
NYJ +130
FanDuelPIT -338.5PIT -156
NYJ +136
WAS vs NYG
DraftKingsWAS -242.5WAS -125
NYG +110
FanDuelWAS -2.542.5WAS +-132
NYG +116
Odds last updated on Dec. 18.
Chris Imperiale Avatar
Written by
Chris Imperiale

Chris Imperiale is currently the Managing Editor of Catena Media's US online lottery site, PlayiLottery. He used to be the Managing Editor of PlayWV, covering the sports betting and online casino industries in the Mountain State. He has a journalism degree from Rutgers University and was formerly on staff at Bleacher Report.

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