Arizona became the eighth state in the post-PASPA era to surpass $2 billion in gross sports wagering revenue after its Department of Gaming reported Wednesday $65.6 million in winnings for February prior to federal excise taxes and promotional deductions.
It was the sixth-highest total in 42 months of wagering since the Grand Canyon State began accepting wagers in September 2021. Arizona also fired another shot across Nevada’s bow with regard to being the top handle generator west of the Mississippi: The $699.7 million in accepted wagers marked the fourth consecutive month handle surpassed its neighbor to the north and represented an increase of 9.8% from February 2024.
Wagering on Super Bowl LIX contributed to the state’s 14 mobile sportsbooks aggressively courting bettors as they spent a combined $24.9 million in promotional credits and bonuses. That was actually down 0.8% from the previous February, but the all-time spend by operators since launch cleared $800 million.
The state was eligible to levy taxes on $39.8 million in adjusted gross revenue, re-directing nearly $4 million into its coffers based on the 8% retail and 10% mobile tax rates.
The race for No. 4 stays heated
Arizona is an operator-friendly state given the allowed promotional deductions, and in recent months, Fanatics and bet365 have established a second tier to themselves behind the “Big 3” of FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM.
Fanatics is enjoying what could be called a solid rookie season, having topped $50 million handle in back-to-back months for the first time after accepting $50.1 million in wagers in February. While its promotional spend has been at least $1.3 million every month since entering Arizona in April 2024, it exceeded $2 million in only September and October to capitalize on NFL wagering.
Its total spend of at least $19.8 million in credits and bonuses — Fanatics reported $0 AGR in its first two months of operation — represents 72.2% of its $27.4 million in gross revenue. It had a 6.5% hold for February to claim $3.3 million in gross winnings and $1.4 million in AGR after an outlay of $1.7 million in promotions.
England-based bet365 began its second year of business in Arizona with a record handle just shy of $49 million. While not an exact like-for-like since bet365 took its first bets in the state Feb. 5, 2024, year-over-year handle more than doubled.
It also kept its foot on the pedal when it came to promotional spending — the $2.3 million in credits marked the sixth consecutive month with a seven-figure outlay. Bet365 has had a wider range in spend compared to Fanatics, but it still has been notable with a low point of $863,095 and peak of $3.4 million.
Its total spend in Arizona is at least $24.6 million since there were four months bet365 reported no AGR. It totaled $2.8 million in gross winnings for February with a 5.6% hold with a mere $325,844 in AGR. Bet365’s spend is 77.5% of its $31.8 million in gross revenue.
The ‘Big 3’ spend big, win big
While the Arizona Department of Gaming does not publish Super Bowl-specific betting results for operators, the 9.4% overall hold for February implies operators likely kept pace with performances in other states. FanDuel extended its early 2025 dominance over the betting public with a second straight 12%-plus hold to reap $26.5 million in gross winnings from $219.4 million handle.
It followed up its record $13.5 million promotional spend in January with another $8 million in February, resulting in $18 million in AGR. FanDuel has accounted for more than 25% of the known promotional spend in Arizona with an outlay of at least $237.7 million.
DraftKings led all mobile sportsbooks in promotional spend for the month with nearly $8.2 million — enough to help it edge FanDuel in handle at $220.3 million. It had a solid February with a 9.6% win rate in claiming $21.1 million in gross revenue. That was also enough to push DraftKings over $600 million in all-time winnings in the state.
BetMGM pulled back slightly on its credits and bonuses: Its near-$3 million outlay was down 14% compared to last year. Revenue, though, surged 16.4% to $7.1 million on the strength of a 9% hold on $78.7 million in wagers.
Putting a bow on national February numbers
Arizona’s figures for February completed the known national picture of numbers for the month. The $12.53 billion wagered represented an increase of 10.6% compared to February 2024, but it is not a true like-for-like comparison since North Carolina did not launch sports betting until March of last year.
The Tar Heel State contributed to a 38.3% year-over-year total spike in gross revenue for the month to $1.2 billion. The 9.9% hold based on the $12.1 billion handle that included every state but Tennessee, and $1.2 billion revenue from all states except Nebraska was nearly two full percentage points higher than the previous February.
There was more than $1.07 billion in adjusted gross revenue for February, which resulted in $262.4 million in total state tax receipts when including Tennessee and Nebraska. That was an increase of nearly $53.4 million from last year.
Eighteen of the 32 states that report handle and revenue figures had a collective hold of 10% or higher, with another six eclipsing 9%.
