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Super Bowl betting handle is the single most-watched number in American sports wagering every February, and Nevada is the only state with a continuous record of it. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) has published Super Bowl handle and win figures every year since 1991, creating a 36-game dataset that spans the pre-internet sportsbook era, the poker-boom years, the post-PASPA legalization wave and, most recently, the rise of prediction markets. This reference page compiles every year of that data in one place, adds decade-level analysis, and places Nevada's numbers alongside the American Gaming Association's national estimates.
Key Findings
Summary: Across 36 Super Bowls (1991–2026), Nevada sportsbooks took roughly $3.65 billion in Super Bowl wagers and kept about $272 million, an aggregate hold of 7.45%. Books lost money only twice (1995 and 2008). Handle peaked at $185.6 million in 2024, the record win was $22.1 million in 2025, and 2026's $133.8 million handle was the lowest since 2016.
- 36 games tracked: The NGCB series begins with Super Bowl XXV (1991), when $40.1 million was wagered statewide.
- 4.6x growth: The 2024 record handle of $185.6 million was about 4.6 times the 1991 figure.
- Only two losing years: Nevada books lost $396,674 in 1995 and $2.57 million in 2008.
- Median hold of 7.4%: The typical Super Bowl hold is close to Nevada's long-run football hold, but single-game results range from -2.8% to 17.0%.
- Nevada is now a small slice: The AGA projected $1.76 billion in legal Super Bowl LX wagers nationally, meaning Nevada's $133.8 million represented under 8% of that estimate.
Why Nevada's Super Bowl Betting Handle Data Matters
Before the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in May 2018, Nevada was the only state where a bettor could legally place a single-game wager on the Super Bowl. For nearly three decades, the NGCB's post-game release was the only hard number anyone had on how much money moved on the biggest betting event in the United States. Journalists, economists and academic researchers still use it as a proxy for the health of land-based sports betting, and it is one of the few sports-betting time series that stretches back more than 30 years.
Three features make the dataset unusually valuable:
- Consistency. The same regulator has reported the same two metrics (handle and win) for every game since 1991, so year-over-year comparisons are meaningful.
- Single-event isolation. Most state sports betting data is reported monthly, blending hundreds of events. The Super Bowl figure isolates one game, making it possible to see how a single result affects sportsbook profitability.
- A control group for legalization. Because Nevada had a mature market long before other states legalized, its Super Bowl numbers show what happens to an incumbent market as competition spreads nationwide.
If you are new to how sportsbooks price and settle games, our sports betting education hub covers spreads, totals and vig in more detail.
Complete Super Bowl Betting Handle Table: Nevada 1991–2026
The table below lists every Super Bowl the NGCB has tracked. Handle is the total amount wagered at Nevada sportsbooks on the game (including props). Win is what the books kept after paying winning tickets. Hold is win divided by handle. Figures for 2025 and 2026 are rounded as reported by the NGCB; earlier figures are exact.
| Year | Handle | Sportsbook Win | Hold % | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $133.8M | $9.9M | 7.4% | Seattle 29, New England 13 |
| 2025 | $151.6M | $22.1M | 14.6% | Philadelphia 40, Kansas City 22 |
| 2024 | $185.6M | $6.8M | 3.7% | Kansas City 25, San Francisco 22 (OT) |
| 2023 | $153.2M | $4.4M | 2.8% | Kansas City 38, Philadelphia 35 |
| 2022 | $179.8M | $11.1M | 6.2% | Los Angeles 23, Cincinnati 20 |
| 2021 | $136.1M | $12.6M | 9.2% | Tampa Bay 31, Kansas City 9 |
| 2020 | $154.7M | $18.8M | 12.1% | Kansas City 31, San Francisco 20 |
| 2019 | $145.9M | $10.8M | 7.4% | New England 13, Los Angeles 3 |
| 2018 | $158.6M | $1.2M | 0.7% | Philadelphia 41, New England 33 |
| 2017 | $138.5M | $10.9M | 7.9% | New England 34, Atlanta 28 (OT) |
| 2016 | $132.5M | $13.3M | 10.0% | Denver 24, Carolina 10 |
| 2015 | $116.0M | $3.3M | 2.8% | New England 28, Seattle 24 |
| 2014 | $119.4M | $19.7M | 16.5% | Seattle 43, Denver 8 |
| 2013 | $98.9M | $7.2M | 7.3% | Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31 |
| 2012 | $93.9M | $5.1M | 5.4% | N.Y. Giants 21, New England 17 |
| 2011 | $87.5M | $0.7M | 0.8% | Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25 |
| 2010 | $82.7M | $6.9M | 8.3% | New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17 |
| 2009 | $81.5M | $6.7M | 8.2% | Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23 |
| 2008 | $92.1M | -$2.6M | -2.8% | N.Y. Giants 17, New England 14 |
| 2007 | $93.1M | $12.9M | 13.9% | Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17 |
| 2006 | $94.5M | $8.8M | 9.3% | Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10 |
| 2005 | $90.8M | $15.4M | 17.0% | New England 24, Philadelphia 21 |
| 2004 | $81.2M | $12.4M | 15.3% | New England 32, Carolina 29 |
| 2003 | $71.7M | $5.3M | 7.3% | Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21 |
| 2002 | $71.5M | $2.3M | 3.3% | New England 20, St. Louis 17 |
| 2001 | $67.7M | $11.0M | 16.3% | Baltimore 34, N.Y. Giants 7 |
| 2000 | $71.0M | $4.2M | 6.0% | St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16 |
| 1999 | $76.0M | $2.9M | 3.8% | Denver 34, Atlanta 19 |
| 1998 | $77.3M | $0.5M | 0.6% | Denver 31, Green Bay 24 |
| 1997 | $70.9M | $2.3M | 3.2% | Green Bay 35, New England 21 |
| 1996 | $70.9M | $7.1M | 10.0% | Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17 |
| 1995 | $69.6M | -$0.4M | -0.6% | San Francisco 49, San Diego 26 |
| 1994 | $54.5M | $7.5M | 13.7% | Dallas 30, Buffalo 13 |
| 1993 | $56.8M | $7.2M | 12.6% | Dallas 52, Buffalo 17 |
| 1992 | $50.3M | $0.3M | 0.6% | Washington 37, Buffalo 24 |
| 1991 | $40.1M | $3.5M | 8.8% | New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19 |
Source: Nevada Gaming Control Board figures as compiled by the Las Vegas Review-Journal; 2025–2026 figures from NGCB releases reported by ESPN, Covers and the Las Vegas Sun.
Super Bowl Handle and Hold by Decade
Grouping the data by era smooths out the single-game noise and reveals the long-term trend. We calculated the average handle per game, total win, and aggregate hold (total win divided by total handle) for each period.
| Period | Games | Avg. Handle per Game | Total Win | Aggregate Hold |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991–2000 | 10 | $63.7M | $35.1M | 5.5% |
| 2001–2010 | 10 | $82.7M | $79.2M | 9.6% |
| 2011–2020 | 10 | $124.6M | $90.9M | 7.3% |
| 2021–2026 | 6 | $156.7M | $66.8M | 7.1% |
| All years | 36 | $101.4M | $272.0M | 7.45% |
1991–2000: The Low-Hold Decade
The 1990s produced the weakest results for Nevada books. Two of the ten games returned a hold under 1% (1992 and 1998), and 1995 was a loss. Buffalo's four straight Super Bowl defeats (1991–1994) bookend the start of the series, and the 1995 49ers blowout of the Chargers is one of only two games in which the house lost.
2001–2010: The Best Decade for Sportsbooks
The 2000s produced the highest aggregate hold at 9.6%. Four of the six best holds in the entire dataset fall in this window: 2001 (16.3%), 2004 (15.3%), 2005 (17.0%, the all-time high) and 2007 (13.9%). The decade also contains the worst result in NGCB history: the New York Giants' 17-14 upset of the previously unbeaten Patriots in 2008 cost Nevada books $2.57 million on a $92.1 million handle.
2011–2020: Handle Takes Off
Handle crossed $100 million for the first time in 2014 ($119.4 million) and set a then-record $158.6 million in 2018. The Eagles' 41-33 win over New England that year produced a hold of just 0.7%, a reminder that high volume does not guarantee high profit. The 2014 Seahawks rout of Denver (43-8) generated a $19.7 million win, the record until 2025.
2021–2026: Record Highs, Then a Pullback
The post-PASPA era contains both the handle record ($185.6 million in 2024, when the game was played in Las Vegas) and the win record ($22.1 million in 2025). But it also shows the first sustained decline: handle fell to $151.6 million in 2025 and $133.8 million in 2026, a roughly 28% drop from the 2024 peak.
The Best and Worst Super Bowls for Nevada Sportsbooks
Because hold on a single game depends heavily on which side the public backs, Super Bowl results swing widely. The ranked lists below are calculated from the full NGCB series.
Top 6 Super Bowls by Hold Percentage
- 2005 – 17.0% ($15.4M win on $90.8M handle) – New England 24, Philadelphia 21
- 2014 – 16.5% ($19.7M win on $119.4M handle) – Seattle 43, Denver 8
- 2001 – 16.3% ($11.0M win on $67.7M handle) – Baltimore 34, N.Y. Giants 7
- 2004 – 15.3% ($12.4M win on $81.2M handle) – New England 32, Carolina 29
- 2025 – 14.6% ($22.1M win on $151.6M handle) – Philadelphia 40, Kansas City 22
- 2007 – 13.9% ($12.9M win on $93.1M handle) – Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17
Bottom 6 Super Bowls by Hold Percentage
- 2008 – -2.8% (-$2.57M) – N.Y. Giants 17, New England 14
- 1995 – -0.6% (-$0.40M) – San Francisco 49, San Diego 26
- 1992 – 0.6% ($0.30M) – Washington 37, Buffalo 24
- 1998 – 0.6% ($0.47M) – Denver 31, Green Bay 24
- 2018 – 0.7% ($1.17M) – Philadelphia 41, New England 33
- 2011 – 0.8% ($0.72M) – Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25
Six of 36 games (17%) returned a hold below 2%, while 11 of 36 (31%) returned 10% or more. That distribution illustrates why sportsbook operators describe the Super Bowl as a marketing event first and a profit center second: the expected margin is solid, but the variance on any single game is enormous. The same principle applies to poker players managing swings; see our poker strategy section for how professionals think about variance.
Case Study: Super Bowl LIX (2025)
The 2025 game is the clearest recent example of a public-side loss. The Eagles closed as roughly 1-point underdogs, most bettors backed Kansas City, and Philadelphia won 40-22. Books also profited on player props, most notably Saquon Barkley failing to score a touchdown despite being among the most popular same-game-parlay legs. The result: a record $22.1 million win on a handle that had actually declined from the prior year.
Case Study: Super Bowl LX (2026)
Seattle opened as a 3-point favorite over New England and was bet up to -4.5 by midweek, with the total moving from 46.5 to 45.5. At one operator, theScore Bet, roughly 69% of tickets and nearly 75% of the handle backed Seattle to cover. The Seahawks won 29-13, covering the spread while the game stayed under the total. Nevada's 186 sportsbooks still held a 7.4% margin, winning $9.9 million, almost exactly the long-run median.
Nevada vs. the National Market: AGA Super Bowl Estimates
Since 2019 the American Gaming Association (AGA) has published a pre-game estimate of how much Americans will bet on the Super Bowl. Its methodology changed in 2025, so the series has two distinct phases.
| Year | AGA Estimate | What It Measures | Est. Adults Betting | Nevada Actual Handle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | $6.0B | All betting (legal, illegal, casual) | 22.7M | $145.9M |
| 2020 | $6.8B | All betting | 26M | $154.7M |
| 2021 | $4.3B | All betting | 23.2M | $136.1M |
| 2022 | $7.61B | All betting | 31.4M | $179.8M |
| 2023 | $16.0B | All betting | 50.4M | $153.2M |
| 2024 | $23.1B | All betting | 68M | $185.6M |
| 2025 | $1.39B | Legal sportsbooks only | n/a | $151.6M |
| 2026 | $1.76B | Legal sportsbooks only | n/a | $133.8M |
The AGA's legal-only estimate for Super Bowl LX was $1.76 billion, a roughly 27% year-over-year increase, covering legal sportsbooks in 39 states plus the District of Columbia. On that basis Nevada's share of legal Super Bowl wagering was about 7.6% in 2026, down from about 10.9% in 2025 ($151.6 million of $1.39 billion). Before 2018, Nevada's share of the legal market was effectively 100%.
It is important not to compare the pre-2025 AGA figures directly to the 2025–2026 figures. The earlier estimates included offshore sportsbooks, office pools, squares and informal bets between friends; the newer figures are modeled from state-reported sportsbook revenue data and include only regulated wagers.
For an overview of which states now permit legal wagering, see our US sports betting guide.
Why Nevada's Super Bowl Handle Is Declining
The 2026 handle of $133.8 million was down 11.7% from 2025 and the lowest since 2016 ($132.5 million). Industry coverage has pointed to several overlapping explanations. None is proven on its own, and the data does not allow a clean attribution, but each is supported by published figures.
1. Out-of-State Legalization
Before 2018, a bettor in Los Angeles, Phoenix or Denver who wanted a legal Super Bowl bet had to travel to Nevada. With legal sportsbooks now operating in 39 states and D.C., that travel incentive has largely disappeared. Arizona and Colorado, both major Las Vegas feeder markets, legalized mobile betting in the post-PASPA wave.
2. Lower Visitor Volume
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported a 7.5% decline in overall visitor volume in 2025, which Covers cited as one plausible reason fewer bettors were in town for the 2026 game.
3. Prediction Markets
Kalshi reported more than $1 billion in total trading volume tied to Super Bowl LX, including futures and novelty contracts, and said that was up 2,700% from the prior year. PrizePicks called Super Bowl Sunday the largest day ever for its prediction-market product. Citizens analyst Jordan Bender estimated that roughly 5% of legal sports betting handle, around $8 billion annually, now flows to prediction markets. Trading volume and sportsbook handle are not measured the same way, so these numbers cannot be subtracted from one another, but they indicate meaningful competition for event-driven wagering.
4. The 2024 Comparison Is Inflated
The 2024 record came in a year when the game itself was held at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Any post-2024 comparison starts from an unusually high base.
Methodology
This analysis uses the following approach:
- Primary data: Annual Super Bowl handle and win figures published by the Nevada Gaming Control Board, as compiled in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's historical table (1991–2024) and NGCB post-game releases reported by ESPN, Covers, News 3 Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Sun (2025–2026).
- Derived metrics: Hold percentage is calculated as win divided by handle. Decade figures use aggregate hold (sum of win divided by sum of handle), which weights larger-handle years more heavily than a simple average. The simple mean hold across all 36 games is 7.49% and the median is 7.39%.
- Rounding: 2025 and 2026 figures were reported to the nearest $0.1 million; all calculations use those rounded values.
- National context: AGA figures are pre-game estimates, not reported results, and are presented separately from NGCB actuals.
- Not adjusted for inflation: All dollar figures are nominal. Adjusting the 1991 handle to 2026 dollars would narrow the growth multiple substantially.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much was bet on the Super Bowl in Nevada in 2026?
Nevada sportsbooks took $133.8 million in wagers on Super Bowl LX (Seattle 29, New England 13) and won $9.9 million, a 7.4% hold, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
What is the record Super Bowl betting handle in Nevada?
The record is $185.6 million, set in 2024 when Kansas City beat San Francisco 25-22 in overtime at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Have Nevada sportsbooks ever lost money on the Super Bowl?
Yes, twice. They lost $396,674 in 1995 (San Francisco over San Diego) and $2.57 million in 2008 (N.Y. Giants over New England). Every other year since 1991 has been profitable for the books.
What is the average sportsbook hold on the Super Bowl?
Across 36 games, Nevada's aggregate Super Bowl hold is 7.45%, with a median single-game hold of 7.4%. Individual results have ranged from -2.8% (2008) to 17.0% (2005).
How much do Americans bet on the Super Bowl legally?
The American Gaming Association estimated $1.76 billion in legal Super Bowl LX wagers across 39 states and D.C., up about 27% from its $1.39 billion estimate for 2025.
Sources
- Las Vegas Review-Journal – Super Bowl betting handles and win amounts by year (NGCB data)
- Nevada Gaming Control Board – official gaming revenue reports
- Las Vegas Sun – Nevada Gaming Control Board: 10-year low on Super Bowl bets
- Covers – Did prediction markets steal Super Bowl action from sportsbooks?
- ESPN – Nevada sportsbooks won state-record $22.1M on Super Bowl LIX
- American Gaming Association – Americans to legally wager estimated $1.76 billion on Super Bowl LX
- American Gaming Association – Super Bowl LVIII wagering estimates
- ESPN – Super Bowl LX odds and betting notes
Cite This Article
If you use data from this article, please link back to https://www.deucescracked.com/blog/super-bowl-betting-handle-history-nevada-data. Suggested citation: DeucesCracked Editorial, "Super Bowl Betting Handle Data: Nevada 1991–2026," DeucesCracked, September 2026. For more reference pages like this, browse our sports betting hub or the full DeucesCracked blog.
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