On Friday, the Tennessee Lottery gave the green light for two more sports betting operators to enter the state’s market. Both William Hill and WynnBet received approval by the Sports Wagering Committeee of the Tennessee Education Lottery.
Unfortunately for fans, however, they will not be available yet to take bets for Super Bowl Sunday.
There are now seven Tennessee-approved sports betting operators.
The state has had an incredibe run in its first two months of live sports betting, compared to other states.
In December alone, Tennessee made more money from sports betting tax than the state of Colorado has made in the entire time that its sports betting market launched in May 2020.
Last month, the four live mobile sportsbooks – DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM and Tennessee Action 24/7 – took in just over $180 million in bets – up from 37.7% in November, 2020. Payouts in December 2020 were $13.9 million, compared to $13.2 million in November (up 5.3%).
The state made $3.1 million from taxes in December.
80% will go towards the Lottery for Education Account, while 15% will be directed to the Tennessee General Fund. The state will allocate the remaining 5% to the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to help relieve problem gambling in Tennessee.
It is expected that Tennessee’s market will consistently bring in $2 – $3 million a month for the state.
This month marks the first since the market went live, that a mandatory 10% hold comes into effect. Operators may be penalized if they don’t hold at least 10% each year, and they could face a fine of up to $25,000.
Tennessee’s sports betting market is doing well for a number of reasons:
- The state chose to launch a mobile betting platform at a time when the global pandemic limited in-person gambling activities.
- There is practically no competition in the region since none of Tennessee’s seven neighboring states offered online sports betting in its first two months of operation.
- Tennessee is the US’s seventh largest sports betting market.
