Nevada sportsbooks handle a record $185.6M in Super Bowl bets with Las Vegas as host, winning $6.8M

Monday, February 12, 2024 11:14 PM
Photo:  By All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA - Patrick Mahomes, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=112095630
  • Buck Wargo, CDC Gaming

Las Vegas hosting the Super Bowl for the first time helped Nevada set a record, as expected, by taking $185.6 million in wagers on the game, the state Gaming Control Board announced late Monday. 

Total wagers from Nevada’s 182 sportsbooks broke the record handle of $179.8 million for the February 2022 Super Bowl between Cincinnati and the Los Angeles Rams. Some $153.1 million was bet in February 2023 between Philadelphia and Kansas City. 

According to Wall Street analysts, Las Vegas hosting the game attracted 330,000 to the city, about 30,000 more than typical on a Super Bowl weekend,  helping boost the handle. In addition, the game was expected to generate more interest among Las Vegas residents to place a bet, given the local enthusiasm over having the game in their city. Analysts also suggested that the presence of pop superstar Taylor Swift, girlfriend of Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, triggered more women to place bets than normal. 

Nevada sportsbooks won $6.8 million, delivering a 3.7% hold. In 2023, sportsbooks won $4.3 million with a 2.8% hold. The largest win over the last decade was $18.7 million in 2020 in Kansas City’s previous defeat of San Francisco, according to information provided by Michael Lawton, a senior economic analyst with the Gaming Control Board. 

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that five of the eight $1 million bets reported on the game nationwide were placed in Las Vegas, including three at BetMGM and two at Circa Sports. Three were bets on San Francisco to either win or cover the spread and two were on Kansas City to beat the spread. 

The Super Bowl also made television history as the most watched telecast of the NFL championship game in history, with 123.4 million viewers on average, according to CBS. CNN reported it was the largest television audience since the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969 that attracted an estimated 125 million to 150 million. More than 200 million watched at least part of the Super Bowl on Sunday.