Jacob Wayne, an analyst at sports data firm LineUps.com, brings us the latest monthly round-up of sports wagering revenue and expert insights from across the US.
April 2022 was a compelling month of activity in the world of sports betting as most states took a significant step back in overall handle for the month. Still, revenue and tax receipts maintained their positioning due to an increase in hold rate across the board. With the NFL season in the rearview mirror and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament over outside of the Final Four, most of April’s sports betting activity came from the NBA and NHL Playoffs as well as the beginning of the MLB regular season.
This article will break down the financial results of sports betting in April for five of the most significant markets in the country, including New York, which has quickly become the largest sports betting market in the United States. For more information on each of the following states’ legislation, financial results, and available sportsbooks, you can visit our website at Lineups.com. We also have extensive coverage of national trends in the sports betting industry.
New York
Handle: $1,396,791,941 Revenue: $104,535,898 Hold Rate: 7.5% Taxes: $53,151,656
In April, New York’s sports betting volume decreased notably. New York’s April handle of $1.39 billion was a 14.7% decrease from $1.63 billion in March. April was New York’s lowest single-month handle since launching legal online sports betting in January. However, it was still the fourth consecutive month with well over $1.3 billion in total wagers.
Revenue remained high at $104.5 million, while the state collected over $50 million in taxes for the third time in the last four months. Still, revenue and tax receipts both decreased by about 9% from March 2022. New York sportsbooks’ 7.5% hold rate in April was the highest rate the market has seen since its January launch.
Flutter Entertainment’s FanDuel Sportsbook again dominated the New York market with $599.5 million in total wagers (43% market share), leading to $63.6 million in revenue. DraftKings followed behind with $327.1 million in total wagers (24% market share), generating $19.6 million in revenue.
According to a survey from mobile gaming customer acquisition company Betting Hero, New York sports bettors use an average of 3.3 mobile applications to place wagers compared to 2.8 in New Jersey. There are currently nine online sportsbooks available in the New York market.
New Jersey
Handle: $926,946,780 Revenue: $50,345,808 Hold Rate: 5.4% Taxes: $6,425,923
New Jersey’s monthly handle slipped below $1 billion in April for the second time in the last three months after five months of a ten-figure handle from September 2021 to January 2022. However, in April 2022, New Jersey’s handle increased by 23.9% year-over-year from $747.9 million in April 2021.
However, the state’s revenue remained over $50 million for the 13th time in 14 months, on a robust 5.4% hold rate. New Jersey’s tax rate falls significantly below New York’s staggering 51% rate, so the state brought in just $6.4 million in tax revenue in April to just under $27 million year-to-date.
Parlays were the primary source of revenue for New Jersey in April, with the sports calendar slowing down. Sportsbooks generated $35.2 million in revenue (69% share) on parlay wagers, with a 17.9% hold rate on $197.3 million in total handle. Basketball generated $323.4 million in total handle, but with a paltry 2.6% hold rate.
Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment had the top sports betting license, with its partners FanDuel, PointsBet, and SuperBook Sports generating $33.3 million in revenue for the month, 66.2% of the total revenue. Resorts Digital was second on the list, with just $7.4 million in revenue (15.4% share) coming from partners DraftKings, FoxBET, and Resorts’ site.
Pennsylvania
Handle: $572,817,741 Revenue: $49,083,331 Hold Rate: 8.6% Taxes: $12,120,141
Pennsylvania joined other top markets with a decline in April sports betting volume as the state’s $572.8 million handle was down 19.9% from March. Still, April was the eighth-straight month that Pennsylvania cleared $500 million in total sports betting handle. Pennsylvania also experienced a 19.5% year-over-year increase from a $479.4 million sports betting handle in April 2021.
Pennsylvania’s sports betting revenue increased by 36.1% year-over-year alongside a modest 1% increase from March 2022. The 8.6% hold rate recorded in April was the highest of the calendar year and the highest since November 2021 at 11.2%. Pennsylvania recorded over $10 million in tax revenue for the second straight month with that substantial revenue boost.
Of Pennsylvania’s 14 online sportsbooks, the top three market leaders took in 76.8% of mobile handle share and 83.3% of revenue share. That top three is made up of FanDuel ($226.5 million handle, 42.3% share), DraftKings ($119.1 million handle, 22.2% share), and BetMGM ($65.8 million handle, 12.3% share). FanDuel generated $28.4 million in revenue, and no other platform had more than DraftKings’ $5.3 million.
Michigan
Handle: $396,009,819 Revenue: $32,630,491 Hold Rate: 8.2% Taxes: $1,101,198
For the first time in 2022, Michigan saw its monthly sports betting handle dip below $400 million. The handle was down about 17.2% from $477.9 million in March and was the lowest since September 2021 saw the state generate $386.7 million in wagers. However, Michigan was still up 44.4% year-over-year from $274.2 million in April 2021.
Despite the decreased handle, Michigan sportsbooks still generated $32.6 million in revenue, a slight increase from March as the state’s hold rate came in at 8.2%, the highest it has been in 2022. With that revenue, Michigan’s sportsbooks paid $1.1 million in taxes. April was just the fourth month the state generated over $1 million in tax receipts since launching online sports betting in January 2021.
FanDuel continues to dominate the Michigan market with a $118.4 million handle coming in at 32% of the online market. FanDuel also led the way with $15.6 million in revenue (47.8% share) on a 13.2% hold rate. BetMGM came in second for both categories with $89.7 million in handle (24%) and $7.2 million in revenue (22%) on an 8.1% hold rate.
Indiana
Handle: $360,023,255 Revenue: $28,657,433 Hold Rate: 8.0% Taxes: $2,722,456
The month of April was a significant downturn for Indiana’s sports betting market as it was the first month of the calendar year, and since September 2021, it has been under $400 million in total wagers. Indiana’s handle was down 24.4% from March’s $476.8 million handle, but it was still up 52% year-over-year from the $236.4 million in total wagers in April 2021.
Despite the decrease in the overall handle, Indiana generated $28.7 million in total revenue on an 8.0% hold rate, the highest rate the state has had since November 2021. Revenue was still down about 11% from $32.3 million in March but up about 43% from the $20.1 million in revenue in April 2021. Indiana collected $2.7 million in taxes, down 13% from $3.1 million in March.
Indiana started the year with 13 sportsbook options, but more are likely to be added to the market this year. Still, it will be difficult to unseat FanDuel atop the market with its $112 million in handle, accounting for 34% of the online market. FanDuel also generated a state-leading $12.6 million in revenue – no other sportsbook had more than DraftKings’ $6.6 million on a $97.5 million handle (29% share).
