Mississippi betting market returns to growth in June

The latest figures from the Mississippi Gaming Commission show the state’s sports betting market recovered from June’s losses in July, growing revenue year-on-year despite a decline in amounts wagered.

Amounts wagered in July were down 40.8% year-on-year to $7.9m, though with just $1.6m wagered in June, this suggested the market was recovering well following the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) shut-down of the state’s casinos.

From this total, Mississippi’s casinos generated revenue of $1.3m. Again this represented a major improvement on the $62,230.77 loss reported for June. A high win percentage of 16.87% also helped revenue grow year-on-year, coming in 26.8% above July 2019’s $1.1m.

July’s growth was driven by baseball, in a month when Major League Baseball began its truncated 60-game season after its March 26 start was delayed by novel coronavirus (Covid-19). In each of the central, coastal and northern reporting regions, the sport made the largest contribution to both revenue and handle.

Mississippi’s coastal casinos again led the way, despite stakes falling 42.5% from July 2019 to $5.0m. While amounts wagered on baseball fell to $2.0m, a win percentage of 20.94% meant that revenue actually grew year-on-year, to $412,564.55.

Read the full story on iGB North America.