Vermont's Burgeoning Online Gambling Industry
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The U.S. online gambling industry has a constantly changing landscape as individual states continue to pass legislation that allows and regulates different betting markets.
June 2023 saw Vermont's governor Phil Scott sign new legislation to allow online sports betting. House Bill 127 opened up the opportunity for online sportsbooks to operate legally in the state.
Despite the Bill passing in 2023, it was not until January 11th that FanDuel, DraftKings, and Fanatics Sportsbook officially launched. Until this time, Vermont consumers had to rely on offshore betting facilities for online betting.
Cryptocurrency and gambling expert Kane Pepi explains that offshore sports books andEthereum poker sitesoffer consumers a variety of markets and payment methods, all coming with their own benefits.
Cryptocurrencies like Ethereum allow almost instantaneous deposits and withdrawals, while offshore sportsbooks provide extensive betting markets on all sports including Basketball, Football, Baseball, and Soccer.
Patient sports fans had to wait for operators to be announced by theDepartment of Liquor and Lottery. The winning sports book operators competed through a bid process.
The state also had to create resources to support a responsible gambling service and will benefit from operator fees and an agreed percentage of the three operator's adjusted gross wagering revenue.
The new online betting industry in Vermont was projected to earn the state approximately $7 million during its first year.
Despite the new regulations officially coming into effect on January 11, fans were able to register with operators from December 12th. This ensured players and sites would be ready to roll.
Vermont is unique in that it does not have any major league teams competing in any of the big four U.S. sports. However, bordering Massachusetts and New York means that Vermont citizens are still close to the action.
The Vermont Lake Monsters are the only professional team in Vermont, but regulations will still prohibit betting on minor league baseball. Despite these limitations, sports fans will still have access to betting markets on more than 70 sports leagues.
Since launching, sports betting apps in Vermont have proven to be popular among consumers revenue growing by $0.3 million from $1.4 in March to $1.7 in April. This resulted in state taxes on sports betting rising from $441,030 to $532,457 from March to April.
Despite these figures, the handle dropped from $20.2 million to $17.1 million over the same period. The drop of 15.4% won't concern operators who will expect fluctuations based on sporting events and fixtures.
The $17.1 million taken in over April includes $3.5 million from non-Vermont based consumers that have crossed the border to bet. The remaining $13.6 million was attributed to Vermonters.
The popularity of different markets will always impact monthly revenues, and April saw basketball fans placing the most bets. $6.1 million of the $17.1 million wagered in April was on Basketball, making it the most popular sports market for that month. Baseball came in second with $2.7 million bet on matches played during April.
The average Vermonter placed bets worth $21.81 compared with the higher figure of $30.56 for those traveling from out of state.
Offshore casinos will still attract some customers looking for other sports betting markets and enjoy global popularity in prohibited jurisdictions and among consumers looking fornon Gamstop casinos.
The revenue the state has already accrued shows why this Bill came to pass, and should continue to benefit the state as revenues rise. September should see another huge rise in betting numbers as the football season starts back, and sports book operators will be braced for an influx of new and returning players.
