Sports wagering revenue in Delaware reached just $12,114 in July, in the first figures released by the Delaware Lottery since March, due to disruption caused by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
Revenue was down 97.6% from $507,410 in July last year, and also 97.9% lower than in March of this year – the last time retail sportsbooks were operational in the state.
As Delaware only permits land-based sports betting, the temporary closure of all retail locations from mid-March meant it the state did not generate any sports wagering revenue during the past few months.
Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway have now reopened their sportsbooks and were operational in July, but the retail facility at Delaware Park remained closed during the month and will not resume operations until August 30.
As such, in addition to revenue falling significantly, amounts wagered dropped 94.7% from $3.9m in July of last year to $209,282, with this figure also 94.6% lower than $3.9m in March 2020.
Players won a total of $195,437 from 3,819 bets placed during the month.
Looking at individual operators, Harrington Raceway just edged ahead in terms of revenue, posting $5,895 for the month, compared to Dover Downs on $5,890.
However, Dover Downs proved more popular with players, recording a handle of $109,755 from 2,498 bets, ahead of Harrington Raceway with a $99,527 handle and 1,321 in wagers.
For the year to date, through to the end of July, revenue stood at $2.3m, while the state’ handle amounted to $20.2m
The July sports betting results come after the Delaware Lottery earlier this month also published figures for its igaming market, for which revenue reached $705,333 in July.
Delaware’s online gambling market remained open during the Covid-19 crisis and operations remained largely unaffected by the pandemic.