Despite Michigan’s lone team making it to the Sweet Sixteen, the state’s bettors had an unlucky March and sportsbooks reaped the benefits.
The Michigan Gaming Control Board announced a rebound in the state’s legal sports betting handle and revenue for the month.
The Great Lakes State's betting sites accepted $421.6 million in bets last month, an 18% increase vs. the $357.1 in February.
Revenue spikes, as do taxes
More impressive was the sportsbook gross revenue, which hit $45.9 million, approximately double last month’s revenue. The state’s operators kept a whopping 10.8% of the bets placed. February, for comparison, saw a 6.4% hold while, January’s was 6.8%.
As the sportsbooks celebrated the uptick in revenue, so too did the state government. Michigan sports betting operators paid $1.97 million in state taxes last month, more than three times the size of last month’s bill, and nearly double January’s haul.
Revenue breakdown shows Barstool growth
FanDuel remained Michigan’s most popular online sportsbook, seeing $146.7 million in bets vs. second-place DraftKings with $101.1. But among the top operators (over $20 million in handle) FanDuel’s revenue saw the lowest monthly growth.
Barstool Sportsbook has been improving its position in 2023. After January’s $66,576 loss, February brought in $116,314, and March saw a 1,500% jump to $1.5 million in gross revenue.
BetMGM saw more revenue ($9.7 million) than January and February combined. To be exact, it saw a 212% jump in profit. DraftKings also saw an impressive increase in revenue at 175%. Caesars’ 45% and FanDuel’s 43% rounded out the Top 5.
On the retail side, Barstool’s Greektown Casino saw the most handle and revenue. While its handle was 46% of the state’s brick-and-mortar share, its revenue was 49% of the state’s total.
