The Illinois Gaming Board reported record monthly marks of $1.16 billion in traditional sports wagering handle and $112.7 million in adjusted gross sports betting revenue in October, resulting in national all-time single-month records on both fronts in the post-PASPA era.
The Land of Lincoln had made incremental increases to set new handle records on three previous occasions this year after its initial $1 billion handle reported in October 2022. But this October’s 7.7% increase from September’s $1.08 billion was enough to finally get over $1.1 billion for the first time. It is the seventh billion-dollar handle for Illinois sports betting.
The 9.7% hold by operators resulted in the record windfall, a 10.4% increase from the previous mark of $102.1 million generated in October 2022. Operator revenue through the first 10 months of the year has surpassed $800 million, up 30.1% compared to the same period last year, while the $8.9 billion worth of accepted wagers is up 16.1%.
Handle from mobile betting apps and online sites nearly reached $1.13 billion, and the eight online operators combined for $108.9 million in adjusted gross revenue.
The state saw an inflow of $16.9 million into its tax coffers, raising the year-to-date total to $120.2 million. That is $27.8 million ahead of last year’s pace through 10 months. Cook County, which imposes a 2% levy on operator revenue from wagers placed within its borders, topped $1.1 million in tax receipts for the first time as revenue in the Chicagoland area totaled $57.2 million.
Illinois’ figures for October pushed the national handle for the month to a record $12.16 billion, and that is without Arizona‘s numbers to round out the month. The $1.13 billion in gross revenue is also a record, and that number is incomplete as Tennessee no longer provides operator revenue totals in its monthly reports. State taxes have also already reached an all-time monthly high in the post-PASPA era of $233.3 million.
FLASH: With Arizona yet to report, October has set all-time monthly highs in U.S. #SportsBetting for:
Handle: $12,156,765,802
Gross Revenue: $1,133,721,726
Adjusted Gross Revenue: $1,026,504,606
State Taxes: $233,295,932*Revenue does not include TN
*Handle does not include NE— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) December 15, 2023
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DraftKings sets highs for handle and revenue
The completed events handle for October was $1.17 billion, as plenty of football and parlay tickets paid out. When those numbers are included, online titans DraftKings and FanDuel both topped $400 million worth of accepted wagers.
In terms of traditional handle, DraftKings furthered the state record with $426.5 million. It had its best month in terms of revenue at $38.8 million, posting a 9% hold on completed events handle that fell just short of $430 million. The revenue total was a 27.1% increase on its short-lived standard of $30.5 million set in September.
FanDuel remained the only mobile operator in Illinois to clear $40 million in revenue, doing so for the fifth time after collecting $43.3 million in winnings as the traditional handle finished just shy of $400 million. It avoided a third consecutive month with a sub-10% hold, posting a 10.8% win rate against $402.7 million in completed events handle.
BetRivers‘ increased focus on parlay offerings this year continued to pay dividends as its $9.2 million in revenue represented a high-water mark for 2023. Nearly half that amount came from parlay winnings, and BetRivers had an overall hold of 10.1%.
Circa Sportsbook’s first full month in Illinois’ digital landscape resulted in a small loss as bettors came out $28,534 ahead on $8.8 million in completed events handle, resulting in a minus-0.3% win rate. Traditional handle for the Nevada-based sportsbook was $9.3 million.
Caesars Sportsbook won the four-way tussle for the No. 4 spot for completed events handle with $66.1 million, but PointsBet grabbed the corresponding revenue spot with $6.1 million in winnings thanks to a state-best 12.3% hold among mobile operators. BetMGM rounded out the top five in both categories, edging out PointsBet for handle at $49.7 million while claiming $4.9 million in revenue.
In its final month before launching ESPN BET, PENN Entertainment was last among the seven operators with $36.6 million worth of accepted bets and $2.5 million in revenue for a 6.7% win rate. Caesars posted a 6.2% hold, resulting in $4.1 million in winnings.
Parlay betting still the operator revenue engine
The majority of Illinois operator revenue came from parlay wagering, with the house keeping $64.2 million and fashioning an 18.2% hold from a record $353.1 million in completed events handle. All-time revenue from parlays in Illinois topped $1.2 billion, which means approximately $180 million in state taxes since sports wagering launched in March 2020 have derived from parlays.
FanDuel continued to be the marketplace leader for this discipline of wagering — the $157.2 million in completed events handle is an all-time high for any operator in the state — though its $29.1 million in winnings ranked fourth. The 18.5% win rate marked the second time in three months it was below 20% after a 13-month run above that threshold.
DraftKings, meanwhile, set new highs for itself in both parlay handle and revenue. Its handle reached $118.7 million, while the $21.5 million in winnings was nearly $4 million more than its previous best of $17.6 million from September.
BetRivers led all online books with a 20.1% hold on parlay bets as it reaped $4.5 million in winnings from $22.4 million handle. Its increased offerings have resulted in dramatic year-over-year increases even with two months remaining in 2023. The $148.4 million handle is more than double the $57.1 million for all of 2022, while the $32.2 million in revenue is more than triple last year’s haul of $10.1 million.
PointsBet’s strong overall hold has roots in its parlay success — it had a 19.7% win rate on $13.3 million worth of wagers, keeping $2.6 million in revenue. All seven mobile operators won at least $1.2 million via parlays as they combined for $62 million in revenue with an 18.1% hold.
Caesars had the softest hold at 12% to claim $1.4 million in parlay winnings from $12 million wagered, while BetMGM had $1.6 million on the strength of a 14.8% win rate. PENN had a 15.5% hold but the lightest handle of the mobile group at $7.9 million to keep $1.2 million. Retail parlay wagering saw operators win $2.2 million from almost $11 million bet thanks to a 20.4% hold.
