Delaware officials release sports betting figures

More than 14,500 wagers totaling $257,000 made in 1st week of sports betting in Delaware

• By Randall Chase, Associated Press Writer
• On 6:20 pm EDT, Friday September 18, 2009

DOVER, Del. (AP) -- More than 14,500 wagers were made on NFL games during the first week of Delaware's new sports betting lottery, state officials said Friday.

Sports wagers made at the state's three racetrack casinos totaled $257,870, but acting finance secretary Tom Cook declined to provide details on the payout to bettors or the net result for the state.

"The state had a positive revenue stream the first week," he said.

Further details on the early economic impact from sports betting likely won't be publicly available for a few weeks, but the panel charged with setting the state's official revenue forecast likely will adjust the lottery numbers when it meets Monday, Cook said.

Gov. Jack Markell's administration initially estimated that sports betting would bring in about $3 million to the general funds in its first year, while generating about $14 million more in "crossover" revenue from increased slot machine play by people drawn to the casinos by sports wagering.

But those estimates were made before a federal appeals court panel restricted the sports lottery to parlay, or multiple-game, bets on NFL football. State officials, who are appealing the panel's ruling, were hoping to offer more popular single-game bets, and wagering on a variety of sports.

Cook said that to generate $3 million for the state over 20 weeks of betting on NFL regular season and playoff games, the amount wagered, known as the handle, would have to average about $1.2 million per week.

The handle from the first week suggests that the state's first-year bottom line from sports wagering would be closer to about $600,000, not $3 million.

But officials remain upbeat, with Cook noting that the amount wagered last week is more than one-third the amount wagered during the entire 14 weeks of a 1976 NFL lottery that resulted in Delaware's grandfathered exemption from the 1992 federal ban on sport betting.

"From that perspective, I think we did well," said Cook, who believes the increased foot traffic from sports betting resulted in increased slot machine play at the three casinos.

According to figures from the state lottery office, net proceeds from slot machines for the first week of sports betting was about $10.96 million, down from $10.99 million for the corresponding period last year. But Cook said the decrease of .3 percent compares favorably with a drop of almost 6 percent in slots play over the past year.

"I think were off to a good start," he said.

Buzz up!