Players in Tennessee wagered $205.9m in sports during March, the second-highest monthly total since the US state opened its regulated sports betting market in November last year.
The amount was 16.8% higher than $176.3m in February and just 2.6% shy of the $211.3m record set in January, according to figures published by the Tennessee Education Lottery.
Players won a total of $187.9m from sports betting in March, resulting in $16.1m in adjusted gross revenue for the month, up 23.9% from $13.0 in February.
The state was also able to collect $3.2m in tax from sports wagering during the month.
March proved to be an eventful month in the state as the Tennessee Education Lottery became the first authority in the US to suspend an operator’s sports betting license, when it blocked Action 24/7.
The Lottery took action following suspicious player activity, including proxy betting and credit card fraud, with one player having made 184 different deposits from seven credit cards – none of which used his name – before withdrawing after “very little gameplay”.
However, Tennessee-based Action 24/7 then filed a lawsuit appealing the suspension, with a court that its license be reinstated after an appeal for a temporary injunction was granted. The operator argued that the Lottery violated its own rules and its chair, Susan Lanigan, acted unilaterally in issuing the suspension.
According to the court, Action 27/7 would likely “suffer immediate and irreparable injury pending a final judgement” due to the suspension.