Bettors in Michigan Wagered $600 Million for Second Consecutive Month in January

The first month of this year came with great news for the Michigan sports betting industry as online and retail sportsbooks continued their impressive financial run.

For the second consecutive month, the state crossed the $600 million milestone. While it came up short of a new record for handle, it is still an impressive outcome as Michigan online sportsbooks also recorded their fourth consecutive month with at least $500 million in handle. Michigan online sportsbook tallied $577.4 million in wagers. That ranks second in the state’s history in terms of mobile sports betting handle.

According to the Michigan Gaming Control Board, the state recorded a combined betting handle of $601.6 million sports betting handle in the first month of 2024. This is coming on the heels of mobile sportsbooks using a lot of promotional offers to woo bettors when the Detroit Lions made their run to the NFC title game.

The figures were reported by the state agency last week after providing numbers from Detroit’s three retail sportsbooks. For two consecutive months now, Michigan sports betting handle topped $600 million, though January’s figure was 2% lower than the $613.4 million reported for December. However, the year-over-year handle was up by 22.6%, from $490.4 million.

Statewide hold also dropped to 8.0% (from 10.7% the previous month) as total gross sports betting revenue was $48.2 million. The State of Michigan received more than $1.3 million in tax revenue for the month, while the city of Detroit saw an overall inflow of $685,000 after mobile tax receipts totaled $614,000.

FanDuel Sportsbook Michigan posted a new record of just under $214 million in online handle. This is an impressive 42.6% jump in online handle compared to January 2023 ($150 million). Expectedly, the online operator earned a record $26.7 million in online sports betting revenue in January.

This marks the third consecutive month that FanDuel has surpassed $200 million in online handle, a threshold that no other sportsbook has hit even once. The operator’s January’s total accounted for 37.1% of the market share in the Michigan online betting industry.

DraftKings and BetMGM follow closely with $166 million and $78 million in online handle respectively. Both top contenders respectively earned $10.9 million and $6.3 million as online sports betting revenue in the same month.

Since its launch, ESPN Bet has been making waves in the Michigan online sports betting industry, consistently posting remarkable figures for its online handle. In the month of January alone, the online sportsbook accepted wagers amounting to $52.2 million.

Although this figure was below December’s record of $55.2 million, it marked the third month in a row that the online sportsbook has surpassed the $49 million threshold in handle. This performance represents a significant turnaround from the days when PENN’s Barstool Sportsbook typically failed to reach the $30 million mark in monthly handle.

There are suppositions that these numbers might see a decrease following the end of football season. Albeit the approach of March Madness holds prospects for ESPN Bet Michigan.

The news of WynnBet offloading its Michigan online license to Caesars Entertainment marks a significant development, pointing towards the imminent closure of its online sportsbook operations within the state.

This move does not come as a shock to those who have been following the company's trajectory closely. WynnBet has been systematically winding down its online sportsbook operations across the United States, having halted operation in its online sportsbooks across nine other states since August.

Financial performance figures shed light on the underlying challenges WynnBet has faced in maintaining a competitive edge in the online gambling market. In the last two months alone, the company's online wagering activities have barely generated $200,000 each month. It posted $209,856 in December 2023 and $213,153 in January while reporting a revenue loss for both months.

The company's market share within Michigan's online betting sector has been minimal, further illustrating the challenges WynnBet faces. In January, its share of the total online handle in Michigan was a mere 0.03%. This negligible market presence underscores the competitive pressures and the struggle to capture a significant portion of the betting audience.