Iowa Sportsbooks had another big day for the recent NFL Championship Sunday. Iowa Gaming Association spokesperson Wes Ehrecke says it was the third consecutive year of record handle among all the casino operators of sports books in the state.
The 21 million, 419 thousand dollars wagered on the Superbowl was around $14,000 more than last year’s record. Ehrecke says Kansas City’s attempt to win a third straight championship was one of the big draws of the fans here and outside the state.”With Missouri not having legalized sports wagering yet, Wisconsin, Nebraska is just retail only, we attract a lot from out of state, as well as in state for wagering on this, particular game,” he says.
Ehrecke says the Iowa Gaming Association only tracks the aggregate numbers for the Superbowl, but says it is the biggest event for sports books. “Then you have, like March Madness, that’s a collective several weeks. And other events will have a fair amount of wagering, sort of like the championships, depending who’s in, the teams that are in it, or like the college football championships, again, it really depends who’s playing for that particular time, but the Super Bowl is kind of the King right now,” Ehrecke says.
Ehrecke says the sports gambling industry has kind of leveled out. “You’ll have maybe a record month or something like that. But overall, year in, year out, I think it’s looking like this is kind of what we can expect,” he says. Sports betting in Iowa became legal in August of 2019.