Sports Betting Market Statistics Report 2026

Wrapping your head around the latest online sports betting statistics and trends should be viewed as a prerequisite for every sports fan. That includes people who might not count themselves as bettors or industry workers.

Sure, if you fancy yourself a religious or casual gambler, you should be consuming all the sports betting information and tips that you can handle. But the business and math of sports betting plays a role in shaping so much these days. Anyone following a team, league or multiples of both does themselves a favor by remaining on top of how the overall United States sports betting market. These numbers can inform so much analysis surrounding games, as well as reflect and predict the goings-on for a given sport.

Whether it’s making money off your next wager, brushing up on the legality of sports betting where you live, or getting a better pulse on sports in general, the data sets and trends we’re about to cover here can be a lifeline.

Last year's sports betting statistics

• The U.S. accepted $165.7 billion in legal sports bets in 2025.
• Legal sportsbooks handled more than $40 billion in bets during Q1 2026.
• Nearly 40 states plus Washington D.C. now allow some form of sports betting.
• New York generated $912.87 million in sports betting tax revenue in 2025.
• Americans wagered around $30 billion on the most recent NFL season.
• More than 90% of U.S. sports bets are now placed online.

The United States sports betting market is still growing

Ever since the Supreme Court of the United States overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act back in 2018, nearly 40 states, as well as Washington D.C., have legalized some form of sports betting. The industry has exploded almost one decade later, reaching a point at which experts believe it will become a mature market with gradual and slower growth moving forward.

While this is to some extent true, the overall numbers continue to be on the rise.

During the last full calendar year, in 2025, the United States accepted $165.7 billion worth of legal sports bets, according to the folks at RG.org. Mind you, this figure does not account for offshore or black markets. There is no airtight way to determine how many Americans bet on sports offshore, but the American Gaming Association estimates that $673.6 billion was wagered at betting sites and with bookies not licensed by the United States.

Anyone waiting for these numbers to dip shouldn’t hold their breath. Through the first fiscal quarter of 2026, the United States’ sportsbooks accepted over $40 billion in bets. For the uninitiated, this would be referred to as a $40 billion handle, with a “handle” being the total amount of money wagered. It does not reflect pure profit.

Anyway, with a $40-plus billion handle through the first quarter of 2026, this puts the U.S. on pace to accept more than $160 billion in bets yet again. In all likelihood, it will be nudged up even further, because we haven’t hit the busiest quarter for sports betting. 

The end of the year is a hotbed for sports wagering. That is when betting on the NFL and betting on college football reach their fever pitch. According to figures from the American Gaming Association, the most recent football season saw Americans wager around $30 billion. That is 75 percent of the entire country’s first-quarter handle for 2026. And it is coming from one sport!

When all’s said and done, many experts believe the United States will climb into the $180 billion handle range by the end of the year. Scale ahead even further, and some predict the market size could nearly triple by 2035, which is less than a decade away.

U.S. sports betting handle growth

These states make the most money off sports betting

When you venture away from the handle and start looking at state profit margins, a clear Belle of the ball emerges: New York is the most lucrative sports betting market in the country. 

During 2025, the last full calendar year, The Empire State ranked in almost $1 billion in taxes from sports betting. This figure refers to the money New York state itself made from its cut of sportsbook profits (i.e. the money betting operators make after paying out winning wagers).

What’s more, the gap between The Empire State and second place is cosmic. Here are the 10 states who made the most off sports betting in 2025, per Jaclyn DeJohn of Smart Asset:

1. New York: $912.87 million
2. Pennsylvania: $187.85 million
3. Illinois: $178.03 million
4. Ohio: $143.85 million
5. New Jersey: $133.57 million
6. Massachusetts: $121.31 million
7. Maryland: $117.34 million
8. Tennessee: $87.57 million
9. Virginia: $83.16 million
10. Nevada: $68.61 million

We don’t blame you if you don't want to do the math yourself. Sports betting statistics can be exhausting. Here’s a cleaner way to digest it: New York made nearly five times more off sports betting than its closest peer (Pennsylvania).

Pardon our French, but: W-T-F.

Of course a few variables go into this. For starters, New York is the most heavily populated state with legal sports betting. The Empire State also imposes a 51 percent tax rate on sportsbooks. No one else in the country assesses a bigger one, mostly because they don’t have the same leverage. Betting operators are slipping on their own drool at the chance to conduct business in New York. The same cannot be said for states like Montana, Louisiana, Tennessee or heck, even Ohio.

Largest sportsbooks by market share

Sports betting in the United States may have another leap in it

Although many entertain the idea that statistics on sports betting in the United States will soon get more modest, we have a counterpoint. Actually, we have two counterpoints:

Texas and California.

Neither state has legalized sports betting as of 2026. It does not appear that will change for either in the next year or so. At the same time, sports betting in California is considered inevitable. The public seems to be in favor of it, and most forecasts believe The Golden State could take in $30 billion of total wagers right from the jump.

For reference, New York accepted a little over $26 billion in total bets during the most recent year. So yes, California would replace it as the most lucrative sports betting market in the United States.

What’s more, Texas sports betting could check in at No. 2. Despite multiple failed attempts to legalize it, The Lone Star State is seeing the number of inquiries climb. Searches like “Sports betting tips for people in non-regulated states” consistently rise in Texas year-over-year. On top of that, the most recent full-year data from GeoComply shows that attempts to sign-up for sportsbooks in Texas increased by a total 4 million. That figure represented an 87 percent increase compared to the previous year.

This is all to say: If Texas and California ever legalize sports betting, the United States’ handle is going to caps-lock SOAR. Assuming both average around $25 billion in bets placed (which is on the conservative end), the country-wide handle will easily clear $200 billion per year right away.

Granted, the timeline for these infusions of activity remains unclear. While California’s plunge into betting legalization is considered inevitable, most do not see it happening before the end of the decade. Texas, meanwhile, isn’t guaranteed to ever green light sports betting. Many think that The Lone Star State sentiment will change once Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is out of office, but this is pure speculation.

Nevertheless, both markets are worth tracking. The online sports betting statistical projections for them are too lucrative to fall entirely by the wayside. The same can be said for fellow holdouts like Georgia and Minnesota, both of whom have tried to legalize sports betting, albeit to no avail just yet.

Sports betting demographics in 2026

Sports betting participation in the U.S. skews younger and male, especially for online sportsbooks. A 2026 Siena Research Institute and St. Bonaventure survey found that 27% of Americans have an active online sports betting account, including 52% of men ages 18 to 49.

Pew Research Center data also shows younger adults are more likely to bet on sports. In its 2025 survey, 31% of adults under 30 said they had personally bet money on sports in the past year. That included 36% of men under 30 and 29% of women under 30.

Prediction markets are changing the U.S.’s sports betting scene

If we had to, ahem, bet on it (see what we did there?!), we’d guess at least three of Georgia, Minnesota, California and Texas legalize sports betting within the next half-decade. A recent shift in the industry landscape may be the primary reason why.

We are, of course, talking about the rise of prediction markets. For anyone unfamiliar with them, prediction markets allow users to invest money in “yes or no” event outcomes. Odds are listed in the form of “price per share.” These shares always cost less than a dollar, with both sides of the contract adding up to the full dollar.

For example, let’s say you’re looking at a prediction market for “Will the Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl?” If the price per share for “yes” comes in at $0.37, this means that the price per share of “no” is $0.63. You would then purchase as many shares as you’d like for one of those outcomes (yes or no). From there, all the money invested in this question on the prediction-market platform gets pooled together. Once the outcome is settled, the operator takes a cut as its fee and to cover taxes. What’s left is then divided up among the winning “investors” depending on the price per share they paid, and how many they bought.

This is similar to how pari-mutuel wagering works in horse racing. Users aren’t betting against a house. They are wagering against the broader market. As such, prediction markets fall under federal regulation rather than state oversight. While former president Joe Biden’s administration kept these companies largely in check during his term, it has been virtually open season for prediction markets since President Donald Trump took office (again) in 2024. Prediction markets are now essentially up and running in every state—including, and especially, those without legal sports betting.

With regulation becoming more lenient, prediction markets are now more popular. According to NavigatorResearch.org, nearly one-third of all Gen Zers say they have used prediction markets to bet on event outcomes, including but not limited to sports.

These online betting trends are expected to eventually resonate with states (like California and Texas) when it comes to sports gambling legalization. Not only do officials know that people are flocking toward popular offshore sports betting sites, but they must now contend with an identical industry considered legal. This says nothing of the fact that users 18 years of age and older can invest in prediction markets. That opens up new business opportunities for operators compared to sportsbooks, whose customers must be 21 or older.

The data shows the impact of prediction markets may be overblown

With that said, for every “Prediction markets are going to stunt the U.S. 's sports betting industry” sentiment, there are even more “Pump the brakes” rebukes.

Another survey shows that 15 percent of all Americans admit to using a prediction market. However, per Yahoo finance, under 8 percent of Americans report using a prediction market within the past six months. Sports betting statistics are higher in this department.

This lines up with the overall prediction-market volume. Bernstein analyst Gautam Chugani “now projects total market volume will hit $240 billion” by the end of 2026, according to Investment News. This seemingly eclipses the $180-plus billion worth of sports betting expected to take place.

But not so fast!

Specific data on sports betting statistics on prediction markets is sparse. The industry encompasses so many different transactions. People “trade” on everything from elections and awards shows to what a celebrity will say in their next interview and even the weather. Even if sports prediction markets account for a huge chunk of that, they are not going to outpace the money wagered at American sportsbooks. 

What this all means for the future of sports betting in the United States

None of this is to say that sportsbooks can afford to ignore the prediction market industry. On the contrary, they’re doing the exact opposite.

Kalshi currently accounts for over 60 percent of all prediction-market trading in the U.S., but sportsbooks like DraftKings and FanDuel have since debuted their own. This inclination to enter the prediction-market space suggests it’s here to say.

There are at least some kernels of truth to that. Prediction markets are wildly popular among younger generations. This is in no small part because they can start using them earlier than sportsbooks. It’s also because prediction markets are more accessible, since they are technically legal in every state.

Projections for online sports betting user growth have changed accordingly. Right now, an estimated 90-plus percent of all sports bets are processed online. The remaining share is allocated mostly toward brick-and-mortar locations. Online sports betting statistics used to forecast 20-plus percent year-over-year increases in usership for the digital space. Yet, between now and 2032, the online sports betting user space is predicted to grow by just over 12 percent, per Custom Market Insights.

It is impossible to know whether this adjustment is solely because of prediction markets. But there is clearly a change in user behavior taking place.

Whether this says more about the sports betting industry as a whole or the diversification of how money is wagered remains to be seen. We will learn more as we get additional online sports betting statistics for newly-legalized states. The same goes for expanded data on prediction markets. As the industry matures, we’ll have more intel on how much of its business model is dedicated to sports.

Important still, the prediction market racket could be at risk once President Trump’s current term is over. If the next commander-in-chief isn’t as lenient, it will mark yet another boom for the U.S.’s sports betting industry. To what end, we can’t be sure. But multiple inflection points are likely coming before the end of the decade.

Other pages in this betting guide

• Winning Strategies used by Winning Bettors
• Software: Tools That Give you an Edge
• Our How-To-Bet Guide for Newbies
• Tips and Advice on Betting