The New York Gaming Commission reported on Thursday a record $2.64 billion mobile sports betting handle for October as the Empire State again raised the bar for monthly wagering in the United States.
The NYSGC has yet to release retail sports betting figures from its four commercial sportsbooks, but the mobile handle easily eclipsed the previous overall record of $2.49 billion established in January. It is the third straight month the eight mobile books exceeded $2 billion handle and 14th time overall.
Mobile wagering was up 13.9% compared to last year, highlighted by $650 million-plus handles for the weeks ending Oct. 26 and Nov. 2. The weeks ending Oct. 5 ($591.7 million) and Oct. 19 ($564.3 million) also cracked the top 10 all-time weekly list.
The 9%-plus hold generated $238.7 million in operator revenue. That was a 35.4% bounce compared to October 2024 as the collective operator win rate was 1.4 percentage points higher.
The robust performance sent year-to-date revenue over $2 billion — less than $36 million shy of the 2024 full-year total — and all-time mobile operator winnings since launch in January 2022 to more than $7.1 billion.
The third-largest monthly revenue haul for mobile books led to $121.8 million in tax receipts for the state. The nearly $1.05 billion inflow into coffers in 2025 is already a full-year record, having topped 2024 by $5.5 million with two months remaining.
FanDuel makes handle history of its own
The marketplace leader in the Empire State among the eight mobile books, FanDuel added another line to its already-lengthy New York resumé by becoming the first operator to surpass $1 billion in monthly handle.
The juggernaut cleared the benchmark by a mere $5.9 million as it bettered its previous high of $965.1 million set in January. FanDuel’s market share of handle also had a notable bump from September, going from 34.5% to 38.1%. Despite the 10.8% year-over-year increase in wagering, its market share from October 2024 dipped one full percentage point.
FanDuel also had a good month in terms of performance, eking out a 10% hold to claim $100.6 million in revenue. That was a 30.1% increase from last year as it crossed into nine-figure revenue total for the third time this year and fourth time — all in the last 12 months — overall.
And then there’s ESPN
In light of Thursday’s announcement that Penn Entertainment and ESPN Bet have canceled their $2 billion partnership after just two years, the figures show an inability to get traction in New York dating back to its launch in September 2024 may have been one factor in ending the deal.
Even with a record monthly handle of $60.3 million, that represented just 2.3% of New York’s mobile handle for October. ESPN Bet likely will exit the Empire State having failed to attain even a 3% market share in any month given the timing of Thursday’s announcement so early in November.
Despite the 47.7% year-over-year rise in handle, a second straight sub-6% win rate meant the $3.4 million in revenue represented only a 5.3% uptick. Barring a spectacular November, ESPN Bet will also leave New York having failed to generate $50 million in revenue since launch.
Scoping the other sportsbooks
DraftKings was another key catalyst in New York’s record handle, reaching an all-time high of $938 million in October. The 15.3% increase in action, however, resulted in less than a one-half percentage point gain in market share at 35.5%.
The mobile leviathan, like FanDuel, enjoyed solid revenue growth, as the $82.9 million claimed was up 40.8% versus 12 months ago. DraftKings notched an 8.8% win rate, up 1.6 percentage points from last year.
Fanatics had another step down in action from August’s “whale play,” with $205.7 million handle. The 7.8% market share was a year low in terms of percentage despite being a 15.3% year-over-year increase, and its $424.7 million in action the last two months combined severely lags behind its record $565.8 million action reported in August.
Year-over-year revenue, though, was up sharply at 50.8% to $18.7 million as Fanatics’ 9.1% win rate was up more than 2.1 percentage points.
BetMGM claimed 7% market share of handle for the first time since July with $187.5 million worth of accepted bets. That ranks second behind its $194.8 million handle reported in January. A healthy 7.7% hold resulted in $14.4 million in winnings, up 51.5%.
Caesars was close behind to complete the top five for revenue at $13.2 million, attaining a 7.5% hold against $175.8 million worth of wagers. Winnings climbed 21.3% from last year, outpacing the 13.4% bump in handle.
BetRivers had its best month in terms of revenue in nearly two years at $4.4 million thanks to an 8.3% hold on $53 million handle. It was the second time this year BetRivers topped $4 million and marked its biggest haul since its all-time high of nearly $5 million in November 2023.
