It was the best of times and the worst of times for upstart Prime Sportsbook in Ohio in February. The operator broke double-digit hold for the first time, taking more than $10 million in wagers. On the flip side, the operator also lost $583,149 on the month, its worst return to date.
Since launching in September 2023, Prime Sportsbook Ohio has accepted $32.7 million. Prior to February, the operator had generated $165,974 in revenue, but with the most recent month of losses, the operator is now $417,000 in the red in the state.
Given that Prime Sportsbook is intent on establishing itself as a book for sharp bettors, slim margins are both expected and by design.
Over the weekend, the operator expanded to its second state, New Jersey, taking a wager from noted professional bettor Gadoon “Spanky” Kyrollos as their first bet:
The message is certainly drawing interest in Ohio. Prime is now the ninth-biggest sportsbook in the state, running neck-and-neck with Hard Rock Sportsbook and within striking distance of Fanatics Sportsbook, which took $14.6 million in wagers in February.
While Super Bowl wagers could explain the revenue losses for Prime Sportsbook are the second-straight month of negative returns for the operator. The only other sportsbook to report losses on the month was Superbook, which accepted $591,374 in wagers and posted $8,109 in losses. By comparison, Hard Rock generated $794,478 in revenue on $11.8 million in wagers and Fanatics had $1.3 million in revenues.
If you consider promotional credit spend, however, Fanatics did spend nearly $1 million on promo offers, amounting to nearly all of its revenue. Prime, on the other hand, spent just $938 on promotional offers.
The retail sportsbook in Ohio experienced similar revenue pains to Prime, with a combined $122,288 in losses. Only eight of the 15 sportsbooks had positive revenue on the month. Fanatics Sportsbook at Progressive Field suffered the most, losing $234,793 on $278,908 in bets.
Overall, online sportsbooks in Ohio accepted $657.7 million in wagers, generated $66.4 million in revenue, and resulted in more than $13 million in tax revenue for the state during the month.
