Sports betting reached an all-time high in the Prairie State for the second consecutive month, even with another significant year-over-year drop in the number of wagers placed in November 2025.
Key Takeaways
- Illinois online and retail sportsbooks generated a record handle of $1.66 billion, a new record.
- Sportsbooks generated an adjusted gross revenue of $169.1 million, the most ever in the Prairie State.
- FanDuel turned a massive $66.6 million profit from a $477.1 million handle.
The Illinois Gaming Board recently reported that online and retail sportsbooks generated a record handle of $1.66 billion, surpassing October’s $1.6 billion. November wagering increased 8.1% from the same month in 2024, which set a record at that time with a handle of $1.53 billion, and it was the third consecutive month with at least $1 billion in wagers.
However, there were 6.1 million fewer bets placed during the month compared to November 2024. The betting volume has dropped off by at least 5 million in each of the last three months since sportsbooks began using surcharges and limits to offset the cost of Illinois’ per-wager tax.
November is typically a busy time for sports betting, with the NFL, NBA, NHL, college football, and college basketball all converging in a month that includes a major holiday. October, a similarly heavy-bet month, produced 6.4 million fewer bets, which the Sports Betting Alliance (SBA) said is a result of the per-wager tax.
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Big tax month
Sportsbooks in Illinois generated an adjusted gross revenue of $169.1 million, a 9.3% increase from November 2023 and the most ever recorded in the Prairie State. The 10.2% hold was the sixth double-digit win rate in 2025, but the first since August.
Illinois online sportsbooks accounted for $166 million of the state’s total AGR. That massive profit haul and the per-wager tax helped lead to $53.5 million in tax revenue, an 11% year-over-year increase, for Illinois.
Online sportsbook operators are charged 25 cents for the first 20 million bets placed in a fiscal year and then 50 cents on wagers thereafter. FanDuel and DraftKings combined to pay out $12.3 million of the total $14.6 million on November's surcharge.
Chicago instituted a 10.25% tax on sports wagers that went into effect on Jan. 1, which was met with a lawsuit by the SBA.
FanDuel crushes bettors
| Online Operator | November Handle | Adjusted Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $583.2 million | $53.4 million |
| FanDuel | $477.1 million | $66.6 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $129.3 million | $13.6 million |
| BetMGM | $89.1 million | $6.5 million |
| BetRivers | $74.2 million | $6.5 million |
| bet365 | $69.4 million | $7.6 million |
FanDuel turned a massive $66.6 million profit from a $477.1 million handle, leading all Illinois operators with a nearly 14% win rate during November. DraftKings generated more dollars wagered, reaching $583.2 million in handle and a single-digit hold.
Fanatics Sportsbook continued its dominance as the third most-used online sportsbook in the Prairie State, generating $129.3 million in wagers and using a 10% hold to produce $13.6 million in revenue.
BetRivers and BetMGM were the only other two operators to clear $70 million in handle for the month, but bet365 topped them all in revenue, reaching $7.6 million on $69.4 million in amount wagered. That came with a cost as bet365 paid out over $475,000 on the per-wager tax, $157,000 more than BetMGM and $275,000 more than BetRivers.
