DC Arena Outpaces Mobile Sportsbook

Results in New Jersey and elsewhere indicate that mobile sports betting rakes in far more money than retail operations, thanks to the convenience factor. Indeed, the percentage of mobile revenue accounts for 85 percent to 90 percent of the total in many cases.

That situation is not happening in Washington, based on August results. Bettors in the District of Columbia have two options. Place wagers online via GambetDC or trek over to Capital One Arena. Patrons prefer Cap One’s sportsbook, operated by William Hill U.S.

William Hill took $9.1 million in bets, the first full month of operations. Revenue amounts to $1.4 million, which means a high 15.6 percent hold rate, according Legal Sports Report.

In August, GambetDC attracted a handle of $2.1 million with revenue of $278,141. Results should have exceeded a typical August, when the NBA and NHL seasons were not playing. GambetDC, operated by Intralot, brought in $3.1 million in bets since the platform launched May 28. Blame poorly priced lines for the less than stellar results. Those odds produced a 14.7 percent hold since launch with $457,166 in revenue.

There were 66,831 bets placed in August on the GambetDC platform, or $31.90 per wager, compared to 69,085 bets for William Hill, which comes to $132.16 a bet.

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History Playbook

On This Day In Sports History

On May 25, 1935, Ohio State sophomore Jesse Owens delivered arguably the greatest 45 minutes in sports history at the Big Ten track meet in Ann Arbor. Owens broke three world records and tied a fourth, setting new marks in the long jump (26′81/4"), the 220-yard dash (20.3 seconds), and the 220-yard low hurdles (22.6 seconds), while equaling the 100-yard dash world record (9.4 seconds). Despite his individual brilliance, Michigan narrowly edged out Ohio State for the team title, 48 to 43.5.

On This Day In Sports History

On May 24, 1918, Cleveland outlasted the Yankees 3-2 in a 19-inning marathon at the Polo Grounds. Stan Coveleski pitched a remarkable complete-game victory, but the hero of the day was Joe Wood. Having converted from a pitcher to an outfielder after his arm "went dead," Wood launched a game-winning solo homer into the left-field bleachers—his second home run of the afternoon—to finally seal the win for Cleveland.