At the request of one or more of the state’s online/mobile sportsbooks, the Indiana Gaming Commission on Tuesday added more rugby betting options to the state’s list of approved events for wagering.
- European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup
- Four Nations
- National Rugby League
- Premiership Rugby Cup
- PRO14
- Six Nations
- Super Rugby
- Top 14 (France)
- World Cup
- World Rugby (International country v. country qualifiers/games/tournaments)
Top 14, the French Rugby league, is nearing the midpoint of its season.
Growing the “other” betting handle
In terms of accounting, rugby is considered an “other” sport for the IGC’s monthly sports betting revenue reports. Through October, the “other” category, which includes everything that’s not football, baseball, basketball, and parlays, was $158,643,546.
That handle accounted for 23.5% of the total industry handle through the first 10 months of 2020.
In Nevada, the other category has historically been around 10% of annual handle.
The percentages vary widely by state. New Jersey sportsbooks have seen 34.3% of the 2020 handle through October come from “other.” Part of that is likely due to sports betting sharps.