Virginia is the fifth major U.S. market that Betfred has ceased its operations

In the United States, a handful of operators have a majority of control over the sports betting market. Unfortunately for Betfred, they are not one of those sportsbooks. It was announced that Betfred is set to cease its operations in Virginia on October 21. The sportsbooks noted on their website that they’ve stopped accepting online wagers, online deposits, or new customers in Virginia. That information was released by Betfred on Tuesday evening. 

They also noted that all outstanding wagers will be settled based on a fair market value as an early cash-out. Virginia is the fifth state that Betfred has had to close its operations. In 2024, they ceased operations in Colorado, Ohio, and Maryland. Additionally, Betfred has plans to close its business in Arizona on November 4. The sportsbook is still offering online wagering in Iowa and Pennsylvania while also having brick-and-mortar locations in Nevada, Louisiana, and Washington State.

What has led to Betfred having to leave the sports betting market in Virginia?

Next month, Betfred has plans to cease its operations in Arizona. That’s due to the sportsbook having a small betting handle compared to other mobile operators. With the small handle, Betfred struggled to get ahead of its promotional spending in terms of net revenue. It looks as though their operations in Virginia are experiencing the same pattern of issues. Through the first seven months of 2024, Betfred had a $3.8 million handle in Virginia. 

That was less than 0.1% of the $3.29 billion in online bets accepted across the state. Betfred’s year-to-date handle was down 45.8%. They reported $660,300 in allowable promotional deductions in 2023 for 5.2% of their $12.7 million handle. However, they finished with negative adjusted gross revenue in nine of the last 12 months. 

Betfred’s AGR reached as low as -$372,824 according to reports. As of February, Betfred was no longer allowed to count promotional deductions. All of Betfred’s gross revenue after federal excise tax and voided wagers went toward zeroing their balance. While Betfred had a 7.3% hold in Virginia through 2024, they still had -$106,796 AGR.