Tennessee’s betting market bounced back in March after sportsbooks reported a slight dip in February.
According to the latest figures from the Tennessee Education Lottery (TEL) sportsbooks in the state took $205.9m in bets in March.
This marks the second-highest monthly total since the state of Tennessee launched sports betting in November 2020. March’s handle was up from the $176.3m wagered in February but just shy of the record $211.3m wagered in January.
Bettors in the state managed to win back $187.9m from sportsbooks in March, leaving the state’s operators with $16.1m in adjusted gross revenue.
March’s revenue was up 23.9% on the $13m generated in February but still down on the $21.8m generated in January.
In terms of tax revenue, sportsbooks paid $3.2m in taxes to the state of Tennessee.
The TEL report did not provide individual data for each sportsbook operator in the state.
Action 24/7 licence suspended in March
March proved to be an eventful month for Tennessee’s betting market after the TEL became the first US regulator to suspend a sportsbook operators’ licence.
The TEL suspended Action 24/7’s licence following a meeting where the regulator was made aware of suspicious betting activity, which included proxy betting and credit card fraud. During the meeting, it was revealed that one customer made 184 different deposits from seven credit cards before withdrawing funds after “little gameplay.”
However, Action 24/7 filed a lawsuit to appeal the licence suspension and it was ultimately reinstated by the court.
The operator argued that TEL Board Chair Susan Lanigan had handed down the suspension before the board met as a whole to vote on the issue. Action 24/7 said that this was not within her authority.
Action 24/7 also said that it had not been given an opportunity to speak when the TEL board met to discuss the issue.
The operator also explained that the timing of the suspension, which came just before the NCAA’s March Madness, meant the operator had “suffered and will continue to suffer irreparable harm.”
Sports betting in Tennessee
In late May 2019, Tennessee became the fourth state to legalise sports betting. Governor Bill Lee allowed the state’s sports betting bill to pass into law without his signature, despite being opposed to the expansion of gambling.
The Tennessee sports betting market is so far the only US state to limit sports betting to online and mobile devices.
Tennessee’s sports betting market launched on 1 November with DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Tennessee Action24/7.
