In February 2025, New York’s sports betting market was greeted with news of a shift in its betting handle numbers. It was reported that player spending across the state’s sports betting operators had fallen just below $2 billion for the first time in six months.
While this news filtered through the market, it didn’t do much to spoil the big picture in terms of year-over-year numbers. This is because the state still experienced healthy year-over-year growth across its handle and revenue, despite the slight dip in wagers.
In New York, players wagered a total of $1.98 billion in February. While this figure is about 20.2% below January’s record spend of $2.48 billion, it points to an 11.8% increase when placed side-by-side with the numbers from last year’s February. The state’s sports betting handle hasn’t quite dipped this low since August last year, during which wagers stood at $1.44 billion.
According to data from the New York State Gaming Commission, February’s revenue hit $184.8 million. And while this figure trailed January’s record $247 million by 25.2%, it still represented a robust 40.8% rise over February 2024. As for the profit margin recorded for the operators and represented by the hold, the record stood at 9.24%.
Flutter Entertainment’s FanDuel continues to sit pretty at the top of New York’s sports betting scene. February saw FanDuel take in $738.5 million in wagers, while also impressively generating a revenue of $92.5. The fact that it translates to a 12.53% hold serves further to underscore its strong market position.
Once again, DraftKings manages to maintain the closest distance to FanDuel, although it is still some way off. It recorded $51.6 million in sports betting revenue from a $717.4 million handle, yielding a $7.19% hold in the process. With a revenue of $11.8 million off a handle of $130.2 million, BetMGM managed to come in third place, recording a 9.06% hold.
Next in the top 5 was Fanatics, posting a modest $11 million from total bets of $169.5 million and achieving a hold of 6.49%. To round up the top 5, Caesars raked in a $10 million revenue from wagers totaling $128.6 million, recording a 7.78% hold in the end.
ESPN has been steadily climbing the ranks in terms of revenue, moving up to sixth place. For February, it generated $3.8 million from total bets worth $43.3 million, resulting in a hold of 8.72%.
In addition, Rush Street Interactive beat the $1 million revenue mark with a $2.8 million revenue posting from a $42.1 million handle, representing a hold of 6.67%.
Further down the list, Resorts World did one better than last time, stepping up to post $696,970 in revenue on a $7.9 million handle, equating to a hold of 7.71%. Placing last at the table was Bally Bet, with a revenue of $484,391 from a $2.7 million handle, combining for a 6.73% hold.
The February dip could have been due to typical seasonal fluctuations, mostly due to it coming from a month like January when major sporting events combine to drive activities at NY sportsbooks.
Operators like FanDuel and DraftKings are managing to roll with the tide, though, even as other operators work on improving their offerings and holding percentages. For now, though, the February dip is not a cause for concern. Further results in the coming months will either squash it as a one-off if the overall performance improves or, worse – leave growing concerns if the drop persists.
New York’s sports betting market is showing no signs of slowing down its continued evolution. Thanks to a robust regulatory framework in place, the state is delicately poised to experience growth in both digital and retail segments. Although February’s handle dropped below January’s, the market remains strong and competitive based on the overall year-over-year revenue and wagering increases.
In the meantime, efforts will continue to be geared toward providing a secure, engaging, and profitable environment for both players and operators. Hopefully, this translates into higher monthly handles in the coming months.
