North Carolina recorded its 12th consecutive month with more than $500 million wagered on sports, extending a run that signals sustained market activity while counselors warn about gambling addiction.
The milestone was reported by Spectrum Local News on Friday, October 2. The outlet’s report also examined concerns about the effects of betting, particularly on young adults, and whether the state’s support for people experiencing gambling problems is adequate.
August handle reached $520.5 million
North Carolina bettors wagered $520.5 million in August 2026, an 8.5% increase from August 2025, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. The figure made August the 12th straight month above the half-billion-dollar threshold.
Eight sportsbooks were operating in the state that month. The Journal also reported that $7.82 billion was wagered during fiscal 2025-26, up 14.9% from $6.63 billion in fiscal 2024-25. Those figures offer a wider view of the market’s scale, beyond the monthly streak.
Legal mobile sports betting began in North Carolina on March 11, 2024. The state’s tax rules are part of the operating environment for sportsbooks, with North Carolina’s sports-betting tax framework shaping the market alongside continuing bettor demand.
Growth brings questions about support
The Spectrum report centered on counselors’ concern that sports betting can become harmful, including for emerging adults. Dr. Jessica Auslander, a sports gambling counselor, said most of her new client inquiries over the previous year or so were related to sports betting. She identified an emerging adult aged 18 to 24 as the most common client profile lately.
Warning signs can include being unable to stop placing bets, spending excessive time researching them, irritability and withdrawing from others. The report also described concerns about betting products that may introduce younger people to wagering habits before they are old enough to use legal sportsbook apps.
North Carolina law directs $2 million each year from digital sports-betting tax proceeds to the Department of Health and Human Services for gambling-addiction education and treatment. Morgan Coyner, executive vice president of the Addiction Professionals of North Carolina, said the amount is not enough to address a growing problem. The question of whether funding keeps pace with the market’s scale has also featured in discussion of North Carolina’s sports-betting tax revenue.
Survey points to demand for guardrails
A survey of North Carolina residents conducted this summer with Meredith College found that three-quarters of respondents supported using mobile sports-betting taxes to fund research on problem gambling. The same survey found that 67% supported legislation to ban prediction markets, a separate policy question raised in the report.
The results show the public-health debate running alongside the betting figures: sustained wagering brings commercial scale, but also pressure to decide whether existing prevention and treatment measures are sufficient. The month-by-month streak marks a consistent level of activity; it does not, by itself, answer how the state should respond to the risks counselors describe.
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