Sports Betting Handle Falls, Revenue Rises in Kansas During July

The Sunflower State’s July handle was down 18.8% month-over-month, but a 12.1% hold on the $9.6 million gross gaming revenue — up 18% month-over-month — helped make up for it.

Brad Senkiw - Contributor at Covers.com
Brad Senkiw • News Editor
Aug 21, 2023 • 15:56 ET • 4 min read
Kansas State mascot
Photo By - USA TODAY Sports

The Sunflower State's legal sports betting operators kicked off the new fiscal year with a bounceback from the previous month.

The Kansas Lottery reported July’s adjusted revenue of $6.8 million, up 66% month-over-month, on a handle of $79.7 million from online betting sites and retail wagers. 

The increased revenue came from promotional deductions dropping from $3.2 million in June to $1.8 million in July. That led to a $683,176 tax payout to the state in July — up from the previous month’s $409,425. 

The Sunflower State’s July handle was down 18.8% monthly, but a 12.1% hold on the $9.6 million GGR, up 18% month-over-month, helped make up for it. 

The six mobile sports betting operators in Kansas produced a handle of $77.4 million, which made up 97% of the wagering, and the revenue before deductions was over $9.3 million. 

The four retail sportsbooks accounted for $2.2 million of the total handle and GGR of over $331,000. 

Big July for DraftKings

DraftKings led online Kansas sports betting in July with a handle of $35.2 million, and was also tops in the Sunflower State with a revenue of $4.1 million. 

The mobile giant gave out $818,000 in promotions — nearly $600,000 less than in June — and hauled in $3.2 million in adjusted revenue, which was up 146% month-over-month.

DraftKings also paid out $321,285 in taxes, nearly half the state’s share, and outpaced rival FanDuel, which had the second-highest July handle in Kansas at $22.7 million, about $4 million from the previous month. Revenue topped out at $3.1 million, giving FanDuel a 13.7% hold before deducting $650,145 for promotions. 

BetMGM edges Caesars

BetMGM, which had its last month without paying state taxes, produced a handle of $7.6 million that just edged out Caesars and its $7.56 million in wagers. However, BetMGM had over $600,000 in net carryover deductions from the previous month and spent more than $267,000 in promotions in July to claim just $45,401 in revenue. Caesars had gross revenue of over $506,000 because of a 6.7% hold. 

Barstool Sportsbook, which will rebrand this fall as ESPN Bet, used a 14% hold to produce over $526,000 in revenue on a handle of $3.7 million. Barstool also led retail outlets with a handle of $1.7 million and gross revenue of over $326,000.

PointsBet finished last among online operators in the Sunflower State with a handle of $649,403.

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Brad Senkiw - Covers
News Editor

Brad has been covering sports betting and iGaming industry news for Covers since 2023. He writes about a wide range of topics, including sportsbook insights, proposed legislation, regulator decision-making, state revenue reports, and online sports betting launches. Brad reported heavily on North Carolina’s legal push for and creation of online sportsbooks, appearing on numerous Tar Heel State radio and TV news shows for his insights.

Before joining Covers, Brad spent over 15 years as a reporter and editor, covering college sports for newspapers and websites while also hosting a radio show for seven years.

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