Virginia Sports Betting Handle Increases in Year-Over-Year April

According to figures released from the Virginia Lottery, the sports betting handle in the state increased by over 8% from April 2024 but was short of the March Madness handle in the previous month.

April Shows Betting Spike

April is not a hallmark month for sports betting operators, as the NFL and college schedules have long been dormant, coupled with a reduced NBA and NHL slate that whittles down the schedule to only playoff teams. Major League Baseball is in its early stages after just launching the new season, and it is a time when many bettors take some time off.

However, growth from the previous April is always embraced, and the Virginia Lottery revealed that the state’s mobile and retail sportsbooks combined for $609.7 million in sports bets (handle), eclipsing the previous April’s $563.5 million, or 8.2%.

Books Bounce Back

As in all the markets, mobile sports betting in Virginia was responsible for the vast majority of the sports betting action, as evidenced by the $603.7 million online handle compared to a relatively paltry $6 million at land-based retail sportsbooks. Despite the encouraging year-over-year numbers, the handle fell 11.6% short of March 2025’s $689.7 million handle.

Revenues also showed an uptick, besting the previous April by 2.8% with $56.1 million in profits for the books, which ironically was 24.4% higher than March despite the lower handle. The sportsbooks won their money back from the previous month, but retail books showed a loss of $473,390, while the mobile sportsbooks posted a $56.6 million profit. The collective hold (win rate) was 9.2% for the month.

The Commonwealth of Virginia reported tax gains of $8.5 million in April, of which $8.3 million went to the General Fund Allocation and nearly $213,000 was earmarked for the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund Allocation.

The Virginia Lottery does not release data on sports betting platforms operating in its state.

Casino Revenues Decline

Virginia’s three retail casinos generated $78.7 million in adjusted gross revenue in April 2025, which was a 7.8% decline from the $85.2 million reported in March. The state’s cut of the $78.7 million totaled $14.2 million for the state’s tax coffers.

Slot machines at the state’s leading casino, Caesars Virginia in Danville, were responsible for $23.7 million of the $32.4 million in April’s revenue. Rivers Casino Portsmouth posted $25.3 million in revenue, while Hard Rock Bristol pulled up the rear with $21 million in revenue for the month.

The three Virginia casinos will have company sooner rather than later, as the Pamunkey Indian Tribe, in conjunction with a new partner, Boyd Gaming, which replaced Tennessee investor Jon Yarbrough in 2024, broke ground in February on a $750 million casino in Norfolk.

Moreover, The Cordish Cos. and Virginia Beach developer Bruce Smith Enterprise began construction in March of this year on a $1.4 billion casino in Petersburg. Rivers Casino and Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming also announced they will be breaking ground this summer on a $65 million hotel in Portsmouth this summer.