The Indiana Gaming Commission reported a record monthly sports wagering handle of $513.7 million for November on Tuesday, but the betting public rose up to limit operators to their lowest hold in 21 months.
It was the second time the Hoosier State surpassed one-half billion dollars worth of wagers, with the previous record of $500.1 million set in January 2022. The recently launched ESPN BET played a part in landing the new record, as its $27.5 million worth of accepted wagers — more than 5.3% of the overall amount — was an all-time high for PENN Entertainment in Indiana.
Mobile handle reached an all-time high of $496.8 million, and while the IGC does not release revenue totals by sport category, bettors wagered a record $169.8 million on parlays, accounting for 33.1% of the total handle. Indiana bettors have generated $1.17 billion in parlay handle this year, which is within $3.9 million of the full-year 2022 total.
Indiana showed surprising resiliency considering neighboring Kentucky launched its sports betting platform in September and Ohio has also been keeping bettors inside its borders with a robust digital presence since launching at the start of the year. Indiana betting app operators posted a 3.7% year-over-year decline with October handle at $429.7 million before November’s resurgence.
The increased action, though, did not translate to more operator revenue. The house claimed more than $30.7 million in adjusted gross revenue, but that number is notably inflated, as monthly adjustments totaled close to $3.9 million in operators’ favor. Blue Chip Casino represented the bulk of that amount with an adjustment of more than $2.8 million in its favor.
The sub-6% hold on overall sports betting revenue was the lowest for Indiana operators since being limited to a win rate below 4.2% in February 2022. The state claimed $2.9 million in taxes, lifting the year-to-date total to $33.8 million. Though year-to-date handle is down 5% at $3.8 billion, revenue is up 2.7% to $353.5 million. That has helped tax revenue run nearly $1.1 million ahead of last year’s pace.
DraftKings at the double as FanDuel falters
With Indiana’s handle of $513.7 million for November, the known 2023 YTD U.S. #SportsBetting handle of $93.964 billion has surpassed the full-year 2022 total of $93.793 billion.#sportsbettingtwitter #gamblingtwitter
— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) December 12, 2023
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Though FanDuel had its best month in Indiana in terms of handle at $175.6 million, its revenue was cleaved nearly in half from October to $9.5 million. The 5.4% hold was its first below 10% since landing at 7% in July 2022, and its lowest since a 4.6% win rate in February 2022.
That opened the door for DraftKings to claim the top revenue spot for the second time in three months with a total of $10.1 million. DraftKings had a marginally lower hold than its eternal rival at under 5.4%, but its $188 million in accepted wagers was an all-time state high and its third consecutive month with a record handle in the Hoosier State.
Even with the runner-up status for November, FanDuel has still out-earned DraftKings by $25.7 million this year despite a $143.4 million gap in handle between the competitors.
Caesars pipped BetMGM for third in handle at $37.4 million, but was held to its lowest monthly revenue total of 2023 at just over $650,000 as its hold was just 1.7%. BetMGM’s hold was a shade under 5%, allowing it to claim $1.9 million from $37.3 million worth of bets.
ESPN BET also delivered on the revenue side in its maiden month, claiming more than $2.6 million in winnings to fashion a 9.5% hold. That was the highest for a PENN Entertainment mobile licensee in Indiana since predecessor Barstool Sportsbook posted an 11.6% hold in September 2022. ESPN BET represented 8.5% of the overall adjusted revenue in Indiana.
PointsBet was one of the few mobile apps to top the 7% industry standard, reaching 7.7% as it claimed $651,000 in revenue from $8.5 million worth of wagers. The Fanatics-owned sportsbook posted its second-highest handle of 2023 behind the $9.1 million in accepted bets in March.
While many operators had low holds, Hard Rock Bet was the only mobile book among the 12 to finish in the red, as bettors came out $55,665 ahead on $5.9 million handle. It was the first monthly loss for Hard Rock since launching in September 2022.
Bally Bet resumed taking bets after a four-month absence to migrate its platform to Kambi. While it set a record for handle in Indiana at $1.1 million, it could only manage a 4.4% hold in winning nearly $47,000.
The 5.2% statewide mobile hold was the lowest since a 4.3% win rate in September 2020. The $173.2 million in digital handle that month was roughly 35% of the $496.8 million posted in November.
Retail books sluggish in November
Running NOVEMBER Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state:
1 New York $2.12B
2 Maryland $550.7M
3 INDIANA $513.7M
4 Iowa ~$289.7M
5 Oregon $71.2M
6 West Virginia $52.5M
7 Maine $37.6M
8 Delaware $8.1M
9 Montana ~$7M
10 TBD#sportsbettingtwitter #GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) December 12, 2023
The pain of low holds also reached the state’s brick-and-mortar venues, which combined for a hold of 5.5% on $16.9 million handle. It was the lowest win rate since the 1.8% posted in February, while the $922,360 in winnings marked the first time they were held under $1 million in monthly revenue since a year-low $398,668 that month.
Harrah’s Hoosier Park dragged the hold and revenue down with its second consecutive losing November. Bettors came away with $45,586 on top of the $869,552 wagered, resulting in the racino’s second-largest sportsbook loss behind the $137,822 deficit in February 2022. Harrah’s has finished a combined $78,538 in the red from $2.3 million in wagers the last two Novembers.
The state’s two racinos and three Winner’s Circle locations performed roughly in line with state averages, posting a 5.4% hold on $5.9 million handle and resulting in more than $317,000 in revenue.
