Legalization of Sports Betting in Vermont Contributes to Record NFL Handle Predictions

The American Gaming Association expects online NFL betting to reach an all-time high during the 2024 season. And the legalization of sports betting in Vermont is among the reasons why.

Earlier this month, the American Gaming Association released a report that projects betting on the NFL to generate $35 billion in total wagers. And yes, this is “billion” with a “b.” 

The raw figure jumps off the page. As it should. But the forecast also represents a 31 percent increase from the 2023 season. Last year, legal United States betting sites reportedly took in more than $26.7 billion in total wagers.

Plenty of factors are driving this massive uptick. For starters, online sports betting in the United States is more mainstream. Thirty-eight states have now legalized some form of wagering. Its approval is now the majority rule. 

And with a new standard, comes both increased accessibility and acceptance. The latter is tough to measure, but it is a huge deal on its own. Even legal sports betting in the United States was once considered a little taboo. Back in 2018, when the United States Supreme Court first overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, the idea of legalized sports gambling was still so new. Even as states continued rolling it out, it was not considered something that had mass appeal. Diehards, of course, would bet on sports. But what about more casual fans? 

That question is no longer at issue. Every type of sports fan is now liable to bet on sports. Customers also span all sorts of demographics. Both younger and older bettors are more common than ever. 

However, as the American Gaming Association also cites, sports betting in Vermont also plays a part in their projections.

Here Is How Sports Betting in Vermont Impacts the United States’ NFL Gambling Handle 

For those who don’t recall, online Vermont sports betting first launched on January 11, 2024. While this allowed residents to bet on the NFL playoffs, it did not debut nearly early enough to impact the overall bottom line.

That all changes now. Sports betting in Vermont is available to every resident of legal age for the entire 2024 NFL season.

Experts, in turn, view this as the addition of an entire market. And while The Green Mountain State is not a flagship region, it’s not exactly an afterthought, either. Sure, Vermont is second to last in total population, behind only Wyoming, according to StatsAmerica.org. But the state’s proximity to premier sports franchises in Pennsylvania, Maryland and New York, specifically, ensure an inflated level of interest.

Consider the results to date. The handle for sports betting in Vermont is averaging over $150 million per month so far. And once more, this is without having gone through an entire NFL season. We will not know for sure until we see the Vermont sports betting handle for September, but there is a chance The Green Mountain State’s business increases tenfold over that time. 

Conservatively, we can estimate that NFL betting in Vermont will generate $50 million per month in total action. Extrapolate that across five months, and you’re talking about another one-quarter of a billion dollars in NFL betting handle. 

And by the way, this figure might prove too low. This (loose) projection does not account for an uptick on NFL betting online during the playoffs. It also does not factor in the betting on the 2025 Super Bowl that will take place in February. Nor does it weigh the rise in NFL futures betting that markets typically experience right after the Super Bowl. 

Two Other States are Also Impacting NFL Betting Site Projections for the 2024 Season

It is not only sports betting in Vermont that’s helping fuel the growth of the USA NFL handle. Two other states will have legal wagering for the first time over the course of an entire season.

Sports betting in Maine went live in 2023 after the NFL calendar already started. More notably, online sports betting in North Carolina launched in March 2024—long after the peak of football betting.

In particular, The Tar Heel State will be a boon for online betting on the NFL. If we are being honest, they should have a much larger impact on football wagering than sports betting in Vermont.

North Carolina online sports betting has now been live for a little over half a year. In that time, the general sports betting handle has averaged around $430 million per month. As is the case for sports betting in Vermont, the North Carolina sports betting handle includes virtually no NFL action.

If you factor in potential online Super Bowl betting and betting on 2025 NFL futures through February, The Tar Heel State has a chance to average nine figures per month in just NFL betting handle alone. Apply that across a six month period, and conservatively, North Carolina itself may add anywhere from $600 million to $1.2 billion in NFL betting handle to the final total.

Combine this with the business from NFL sports betting in Vermont as well as Maine, and you start to better understand the American Gaming Association’s projections. NFL betting in the USA is likely adding $2 billion or more to its handle through these three markets alone. 

Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can find one that works for all of your sports betting needs: