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.
Enjoying Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account
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.
