US sportsbooks have crowned one of their most profitable football seasons of all time with a big Super Bowl win.
Over $ 136 million was wagered on the Super Bowl LV with Nevada sports betting. The state’s books netted $ 12.6 million net in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ attack on the Kansas City Chiefs, according to data released Tuesday by the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
The $ 136 million wagered was down 12% from last year’s Super Bowl, partly due to occupancy restrictions at Las Vegas casinos amid the coronavirus pandemic. However, it was still the fifth largest since the state began monitoring betting action in the game in 1991. Five of the six reported bets of more than $ 1 million in the Super Bowl were placed in Nevada.
Illinois, New Jersey and Pennsylvania were also among the states that reported wins in the Super Bowl, with betting increases in many of the jurisdictions that have launched legal sports betting markets in recent years. Data from leading geolocation company GeoComply showed a 267% year-on-year increase in online betting over the Super Bowl weekend – despite several sports bets having suffered service interruptions in the previous hours and during the game.
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Approximately $ 117.4 million was wagered on the Super Bowl with New Jersey sports betting – an increase of 116% over last year’s game. After suffering net losses in its first two Super Bowls, New Jersey books earned a net $ 11.3 million.
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Illinois sportsbooks raised $ 45.6 million in Super Bowl bets – 94% of them placed online – and earned a net profit of $ 7.7 million in the state’s first Super Bowl with a legal betting market.
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Pennsylvania sports betting raised $ 53.6 million in Super Bowl bets and netted $ 9.4 million net. Sportsbooks did well with the Bucs pulling the corner and covering the 3-point gap in a 31-9 game that scored less than expected.
“Overall, a solid day,” Adam Pullen, assistant director of trading at William Hill US, told ESPN. “The game is ending [the total] and Tampa [covering the spread] it was the preferred result. There were not many crazy attempts that the public likes to bet on, which was good for us. “
A long shot that came was the Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, launching passes for zero touchdown. A New Jersey punter placed a $ 3,000 bet with William Hill US on Mahomes who did not bet on a 15-1 score and won $ 45,000 net.
In 2020, Nevada sports betting earned a net worth of $ 122.4 million in football betting – both college and professional – making it the most profitable football year of all time for bookmakers in the state.
Over the course of the season, the stakes on the chances of winning the Super Bowl dropped significantly, and bookmakers were preparing for a huge drop in Super Bowl bets, especially with casinos restricted to 25% capacity.
Jay Kornegay, vice president of sports and racing operations for the SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas, said that controlling Super Bowl bets in his store was similar to how much was bet on last year’s game between the Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers .
“In fact, we dealt with this year’s game more than last year’s game,” said Kornegay. “But the overall number fell short of last year, but mainly because of the [Super Bowl] the futures pool is well below last year’s pool. “
In normal times, Kornegay says that Super Bowl Sunday in sports betting looks like a heavyweight fight is going to happen. This year, he said it looked more like a “welterweight” fight.