Football comeith and then takeith away. Now that America’s sport is over, legal sports betting in the Hawkeye State took a hit. The Super Bowl was not popular enough to raise Iowa’s monthly handle and now the state saw its bets decrease to August 2022 levels, before the football season started.
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission reported that Iowa took in $193.8 million in bets, a significant declines compared to January’s $233.6 million.
That being said, Iowans made their wagers count, lowering the sportsbook's hold from 7% the previous month to 6.1%. These numbers were not ideal for tax revenue as the 18 licensed operators ended with $11.8 million in net receipts.
The state tax came to $789,626, a 21% hit compared to January and almost half of the $1.35 million haul in December. This is first time the tax bill fell short of $1 million since August.
DraftKings stays king
Sports betting in Iowa is once again led by DraftKings. While their handle fell, so too did all of the big online sports betting sites in Iowa. In February DraftKing’s handle hit $69.6 million, a $3.3 million drop, but it increased its lead over rival FanDuel. FanDuel’s handle was $43 million, an $11.8 million decline.
Caesars’ $28.6 million handle saw a $6.9 million contraction and BetMGM’s $12.3 million was a $4.8 million fall.
Even though statewide handle fell, Iowa’s crowded field of sportsbooks stayed consistent. In February, 14 of the 18 operators had a handle of $500,000 or higher compared to 13 in January.
Tipico Sportsbook saw its handle triple month over month from $316,036 to $950,534.
