A monumental sports betting handle in October led to a 24.5% year-over-year increase and a new record for the amount wagered in the Land of Lincoln.
The Illinois Gaming Board recently reported a monthly handle of $1.45 billion, ahead of the previous high of $1.37 billion set in November 2023. Dollars wagered in October surpassed September by over 10% and $40 billion by the state all time.
However, October's revenue didn’t match the high volume of betting. Online and retail sportsbooks in Illinois produced $81.4 million in revenue, a 27.8% decrease from Oct. 2023.
Sports betting operators’ 5.6% hold was the state's eighth-lowest ever and down from four points year-over-year.
Retail sportsbooks didn’t even produce a 4% win rate on the $36.7 million wagered in person. Mobile operators kept 5.7% of a nearly $1.41 billion handle.
Still, Illinois filled its coffers with $24.5 million, up more than $7 million from the previous October because of the progressive tax rate that went into effect in July.
October revenue woes
Illinois joined a long list of betting markets that got hit hard by an unprecedented run of NFL favorites winning and many covering during a multi-week stretch in mid-October.
The Land of Lincoln was one of 15 reporting states to produce a hold under 7%, and revenue fell 40.4% from an operator-friendly September. That put Illinois alongside Nevada and Michigan among the top 10 U.S. sports betting handle states with at least a -40% month-over-month revenue change.
Three operators set new monthly handle records
| Operator | October handle | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $507.7 million | $23.1 million |
| FanDuel | $478.2 million | $33.9 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $103.7 million | $8.2 million |
| BetRivers | $76.8 million | $4.9 million |
| BetMGM | $72.8 million | $2.2 million |
| ESPN BET | $68 million | $3.9 million |
The top three online sportsbooks in Illinois sports betting all produced a record wagering month. DraftKings’ $507.7 million is the highest handle the mobile operator has ever generated. FanDuel’s $478.2 million and Fanatics Sportsbook’s $103.7 million are the best those sportsbooks have ever done in Illinois.
BetRivers beat out many of its competitors to finish with the fourth-highest handle at $76.8 million. BetMGM wasn’t far behind with $72.8 million while ESPN BET knocked Caesars out of the sixth spot with a $68 million handle.
FanDuel and Fanatics were the only two operators to reach a 7% hold while five of the nine online sportsbooks produced win rates below 5%. Circa Sports had an especially rough month, losing over $104,000 on an $11.3 million handle.
Parlay profits plummet
Operators won just 2.8% of the $431.1 million wagered on the NFL and college football, which was close to the same hold as September. The handle was down about 3% month-over-month.
October football struggles were felt more in parlays. The hold on multi-leg bets fell from 23.8% in September to 8.6% in October, the lowest in more than four years. Operators hauled in $25 million less in revenue month-over-month from traditional parlays.
The World Series helped generate $94.3 million in baseball wagers during October, down from the $160.3 million from September. The return of the NBA’s regular season led to a $160.5 million basketball handle while tennis generated $110 million in wagers.
