The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reported $50.4 million in gross sports betting revenue for February on Wednesday as sportsbooks could not play off Eagles fans in the Super Bowl this year.
Operator winnings were down 18.9% compared to February 2023 when the Philadelphia Eagles lost 38-35 to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII. Sportsbooks in the Keystone State routed the betting public last February in large part because of the outcome, claiming $29.7 million in winnings as the total monthly haul of $62.2 million ranks 10th all time in 64 months of wagering.
The house performed well for Super Bowl LVIII, winning $11.1 million and posting a 15.5% hold as the Chiefs rallied for a 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers. But bettors raised their game elsewhere in February, holding operators to a 6.7% hold that was nearly one full percentage point below the statewide 7.6% win rate on $661.7 million handle.
Overall handle was up 10.4% compared to February 2023 and is up 10.8% compared to the first two months of last year at $1.52 billion. Despite the middling February, the strong January helped gross revenue surge 23.2% compared to the first two months of 2023.
After deductions, which included $20.2 million worth of promotional credits and bonuses, the state was able to levy its 34% tax on $30.3 million in adjusted gross revenue, resulting in an inflow of $10.3 million into its coffers. The $34.1 million in state taxes collected in 2024 is $6 million ahead of last year’s pace.
FanDuel held in check by its standards
After a 13-month run of 10% holds or higher from July 2022 through August 2023, FanDuel had a sub-9% win rate for the fourth time in the last seven months. FanDuel narrowly missed that mark in February while winning $24.6 million in gross revenue from $274.6 million handle.
That was less than half its state-record $54.7 million haul from January as its win rate plunged almost six full percentage points. The top sports betting app in the Keystone State for handle, FanDuel also provided the most freebies to bettors with $7 million in credits and bonuses.
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DraftKings was a close second in promotional outlay at $6.3 million, and it also saw a marked decline in month-over-month revenue at $13.9 million. It attained a 7.9% hold on $175.8 million while being denied its first three-month streak with double-digit holds.
Despite a 31.5% drop in handle from January to $51.3 million, ESPN BET was still a comfortable third in that category as no one came within $15 million of the PENN Entertainment-owned book. Its promotional spend of $2.1 million was a slight increase from January, but ESPN BET fared far better in February as its 6.4% hold resulted in $3.3 million in revenue.
That was more than double January’s $1.6 million when it finished with minus-$310,365 in adjusted gross revenue. ESPN BET also continues to notably outpace its 7% mobile market share first-year expectations in the Keystone, reaching 8.2% in February and 8.8% for the first two months of 2024.
BetMGM saw its hold nearly cleaved in half to 6.9% as gross revenue plunged $3.6 million from January. It won $2.4 million from $35.3 million worth of wagers, but the $2 million-plus in promotional spend was 85% of that total.
Caesars Sportsbook rounded out the top five for handle at $30.1 million, but it also had the biggest loss of any mobile operator as bettors came out $271,833 ahead. It was the first losing month for Caesars since a $91,000 deficit in April 2022 and its largest since entering the state in March 2020.
The first full month of operations for Fanatics Sportsbook saw a 43.1% bump in handle from January to $15.1 million, aided by $1.2 million in promotional spend. Fanatics, which migrated its platform from PointsBet before entering the Keystone State on Jan. 22, posted a 10.2% hold for February to reap $1.5 million in gross revenue and totaled $369,016 in AGR. The 2.4% mobile market share was the best for the Hollywood York licensees since PointsBet had a 2.5% share in December 2022.
Bettors walked away with $25,274 more than the $865,528 they wagered with Betfred, marking the sportsbook’s eighth losing month in the last 14. The England-based sportsbook has an all-time 1.8% hold since entering Pennsylvania in December 2020, winning $717,700 from $39.5 million handle.
FOX BET, which closed up shop last August, paid out $6,664 in winning futures bets in February. Mobile handle totaled $627.5 million for the month, with operators notching a 7.7% win rate to collect $48.3 million in gross winnings.
