The Tennessee sports betting handle dipped for the second straight month in February, but still topped 2022’s February numbers.
February’s handle was $327,326,201, down 20.3% from January’s $410,773,606, but up 4.5% from February 2022’s $313,298,305. December 2022 set a Tennessee record with $440.4 million, a number which barely beat out November’s $439.4 million. December does have one more day in it.
Throughout football season, the state saw its handle numbers – all at online Tennessee sportsbook apps in a state with no casinos – climb each month. So the reason for the drop in January-February should be obvious.
TN Sports Betting, February vs. January
What’s Ahead After Football
The Tennessee Titans finished the NFL season by dropping seven games in a row and wagering on them ended with a Jan. 7 loss to Jacksonville. The Volunteers’ excellent college football season ended Dec. 30 with a win over Clemson in the Orange Bowl. Tennessee bettors only care so much about a Kansas City vs. Philadelphia Super Bowl.
Tennessee sportsbooks set records repeatedly toward the end of 2022 but, as football ends, interest is bound to drop. That’s usually true around the country and the Volunteer State is no exception.
But UT is a No. 4 seed in the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament and Memphis is a No. 8 seed as action gets underway this week. So March Madness betting, which is already popular, might have a little more juice in Tennessee. The Vols face No. 13 seed Louisiana in the East Region on Thursday (9:40 p.m. Eastern, CBS) and the Tigers open against No. 9 FAU, also in the East, on Friday (9:20, TNT). Additionally, Vanderbilt already has a first-round NIT win over Yale under its belt.
In the NBA, the Memphis Grizzlies are hanging on to second place in the Western Division and will get Ja Morant back next week. The Grizzlies are +200 at BetMGM Tennessee Sportsbook to win their first NBA title, and +900 to win the Western Conference. In the NHL, the Nashville Predators are on the bubble looking in at a playoff spot, so there should be some hockey betting interest over the next month.
Other TN Sportsbook Numbers Follow Trend
As for the online sportsbook numbers, the February gross payouts followed the trend of the handle. February’s gross payout was $293,382,270, down 20.6% from January ($369,381,020) and up 0.4% from February 2022 ($292,353,287).
February’s adjusted gross income for the sportsbooks was $31,844,712, down 12.4% from January ($36,347,994) and up 110.4% from February 2022 ($15,132,871), probably because the books spent less on advertising and free bet promotions.
The Tennessee state coffers also made out well in February: The privilege tax was $6,380,150, down 12.2% from January ($7,269,600) and up 110.8% from February 2022 ($3,026,574).
Don’t forget to find the best TN sports betting promos at BetTennessee all year long.
