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September 25, 2023

$175 million wagered on retail sports in CT over two years

Contributed The bar and restaurant planned at the XL Center sportsbook would be operated by Spectra Venue Management.

Comically large scissors set the scene earlier this week, as reported by CTNewsJunkie, when Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin and House Speaker Matthew Ritter cut the ribbon at the grand opening of a sports bar and sportsbook at the XL Center in downtown Hartford. The sportsbook is the 10th in the state out of the 15 authorized by law.

It’s been about two years since the CT Lottery began retail sports betting, and its most recent annual report for the fiscal year ending in June 2022 shows that it made up 37% of all sports betting sales, and in total, all sports betting made up 9.4% of all gaming sales. Instant games accounted for about 50%.

Since October 2021, about $175 million has been gambled in retail sports, a monthly average of $7.6 million, according to data compiled by the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, which regulates gambling in the state.

 

About 89% of the total money wagered, $156 million, was paid out in patron winnings, while 1.65% was used towards federal excise taxes and payments to the state’s general fund.

The state’s general fund received an average of about $107,000 each month from retail sports, with a high of $192,912 in September of last year. In total, retail sports betting has funded $2.4 million worth of state services.

Less than 0.5% of the sports retail wagers are modified or canceled and 8.8% is turned into revenue for the CT Lottery, which it uses for operating costs and to give a share to the retailers.

Just this month, the CT Lottery opened a new headquarters and claims center in Wallingford and announced a new sportsbook location in Bridgeport.

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