North Carolina’s legal sports betting market posted another year-over-year increase in April, continuing a growth trend that has kept wagering and tax revenue ahead of last year’s pace. State data showed that bettors placed more than $600 million in wagers during the month despite the end of football season.
Figures released by the North Carolina State Lottery Commission showed that paid wagering reached approximately $594 million in April 2026. When promotional wagers were included, total betting activity climbed to more than $612 million. The latest totals represented a rise of roughly 6% compared to April 2025.
April marked the seventh time in the last eight months that bettors in North Carolina wagered at least $600 million overall through the state’s online sportsbooks. Operators active in the market include FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Fanatics, Caesars, theScore Bet, and bet365.
The increase arrived even though no North Carolina college basketball team advanced to the NCAA Final Four this year. Duke exited the tournament in the Elite Eight after losing to UConn, which later fell to Michigan in the national championship game.
Betting Totals Continue Upward Trend
The April results pushed North Carolina past $14 billion in paid sports wagers since legal betting launched in March 2024. Including promotional bets, the statewide total has now exceeded $15.3 billion.
State officials said wagering patterns have followed a consistent cycle since launch, with betting activity generally peaking between September and April before slowing during the summer months.
A full month of Major League Baseball games alongside wagering tied to the Masters tournament helped sustain betting volume during April. April 2024 remained stronger overall because NC State reached the Final Four that year and sportsbooks were spending heavily on promotions during the market’s early stages.
Through the first 10 months of fiscal year 2026, North Carolina sportsbooks have generated $5.6 billion in paid wagers. That pace places the state on track to exceed fiscal year 2025 totals, which finished at $6.4 billion in paid bets.
Sportsbook Revenue And Taxes Climb
Operators reported approximately $64.5 million in gross wagering revenue during April. Although that represented the second-lowest monthly revenue total of 2026 behind February, sportsbook earnings still increased more than 37% compared to April of last year.
Sportsbooks held 8.2% of wagers during the month, marking the first time since July 2025 that the statewide hold percentage remained below double digits.
Promotional spending remained elevated. Sportsbooks distributed roughly $18 million in promotional wagering credits during April, down from $20.8 million in March but higher than February’s total of $14.4 million.
North Carolina collected an estimated $11.6 million in sports betting taxes during April through the state’s 18% tax rate on gross wagering revenue. April also became the eighth consecutive month in which sports betting tax collections topped $10 million.
Since legal wagering launched, North Carolina has generated more than $287 million in cumulative sports betting taxes. With two months remaining in the fiscal year, the state remains positioned to surpass last year’s totals for both betting activity and tax revenue.
Source:
“April sports betting in North Carolina up 6% over previous year”, wral.com, May 7, 2026
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