Oregon’s online sports betting handle fell yet again in August, reporting US$28.2m, lower than July’s total of US$28.45m.
Although it’s a slight reduction on a monthly basis, it is the state’s best August on record since the online sportsbook launch in October 2019. August 2020 saw US$25.8m of wagers taken, with August 2021 reporting the state’s lowest on record with just US$17.7m in handle.
The Oregon sportsbook has undergone a revamp in recent months, with DraftKings replacing Scoreboard as the operator behind the sole legal online operator. Scoreboard financials are still being reported; although these are only ante-post bets being settled when and where appropriate and only represent very small numbers.
As expected, on a sport-by-sport breakdown, Baseball recorded the largest volume and value of wagers, given it’s the only large US sport that is currently operating in a full season. With NFL now underway in early September, the monthly figures for Oregon online sports betting should soon rebound to reach new highs under DraftKing’s new look book.
What do Oregon punters bet on?
In 2021, wagering on football grew from US$1m in August to US$9.7m in September, before reaching US$15.4m in October. The state has historically taken the largest value of wagers on basketball, but given the NBA doesn’t resume for a while longer, the rebound may not be as immediate.
Covid-19 led fixture disruption has skewed year-on-year comparisons, but the record wagered on basketball fixtures is upwards of US$23m in a month – which is nearly the entirety that has been wagered in August.
This year, with an undisrupted sporting calendar and a new-look mobile sportsbook, the state of Oregon will be looking for substantial growth in wagering and gross gaming revenue, thus giving further receipts to state.
Retail sportsbook and gaming in OG is only undertaken by tribal casinos, so data is not readily available given they do not report to the same regulatory body.
