Michigan has become the fifth state to generate more than $500m in combined retail and online sports bets, as the region’s online casinos and poker rooms fell a fraction shy of record performance.
The latter generated $107.6m in gross gaming revenue, falling just short of October’s record of $109.7m by 1.9 per cent, but revenue actually grew to $3.59m per day over the 30 days of November, from $3.54m per day through October.
Michigan’s online casinos and poker rooms have now generated $992.2m in gross gaming revenue, putting the state at the doorstep of $1bn for the year that nly New Jersey and Pennsylvania have reached.
“No other first-year online gaming market has come close to Michigan’s success,” said Eric Ramsey, an analyst for PlayUSA.
“Michigan was always a market with enormous potential, but rivalling the results of New Jersey and Pennsylvania so soon has been impressive.”
Online sportsbooks in Michigan drew a record $473.8m in November, breaking the record of $463.6m set in October by 2.3 per cent. Add $26.7m in retail wagering at Detroit-area casinos announced earlier this week, and Michigan’s online and retail sportsbooks hit $500.5m in wagering for the month.
Michigan joined New Jersey, Nevada, Illinois and Pennsylvania as the only states to generate $500 million in wagers in one month.
Online sportsbooks won $54.1m in gross revenue in November, up 122.7 per cent from $24.3m in October. Combined with $4.6m in retail revenue, sportsbooks won a total of $58.8m for the month, up 118.1 per cent from $26.9m in October and topping the previous high of $35.2m in March.
After promotional credits, taxable revenue for both online and retail wagering hit $38.8m, another state high, which yielded a record $2.9m in state taxes.
“Michigan football’s run, including the intense interest in its showdown with Ohio State, certainly helped buoy sportsbooks,” said Matt Schoch, lead analyst for PlayMichigan.
“The rising tide of the past three months, though, is more than one game and one sport. Sportsbooks continue to reach more and more Michiganders, and bettors are becoming increasingly comfortable with more diverse forms of betting. Sportsbooks are looking at a bright future, even after football season.”
DraftKings retook the online market lead with $126.3m in wagers, up from $120.4m in October, yielding $13.1m in gross gaming revenue. FanDuel was second with $115.2m in bets in November, down from $124m in October. November’s wagering produced a market-topping $18.3m in gross sports betting revenue.
“Nowhere is the competition between DraftKings and FanDuel more closely fought than in Michigan,” commented Matt Schoch, lead analyst for PlayMichigan.
“Nearly one year into online sports betting, the two rivals continue to trade the top spot. The biggest difference is that FanDuel has wrung more revenue from the wagering it has taken in, even as DraftKings has expanded its market share.”
