Ohio State's lack of football in January might’ve been a factor in the Buckeye State’s 8% year-over-year handle decrease.
Key Takeaways
- Operators generated a second consecutive handle under $1 billion.
- Ohio State’s season ended on the last day of 2025.
- With the Buckeyes’ early playoff dismissal, year-over-year revenue spiked 24%.
The Ohio Casino Control Commission recently reported that online and retail sportsbooks generated $931.1 million in wagers for the first month of 2026. The previous January, when Ohio State won the national title, saw over $1 billion in bets.
The latest January handle was nearly on par with December 2025’s amount wagered, but that’s now two consecutive months below $1 billion after November and October eclipsed that mark.
Ohio State’s season ended on New Year’s Eve with a College Football Playoff loss to Miami in the Cotton Bowl, leading to no carryover in January.
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Profits up
Without the Buckeyes’ winning championship run, gross revenue in Ohio improved by 24% compared to the same month in 2025. The $99.6 million in monthly profits was the first under $100 million since September, though.
Still, the 10.7% hold towered over the previous January’s 7.9%, and it was the third consecutive double-digit win rate produced in Ohio. Online sportsbooks won back $98.3 million on a $917.6-million handle.
The Buckeye State’s 13 retail sports betting operators generated $1.3 million in gross revenue from over $13.5 million in wagers. Total taxable revenue of $99.7 million put nearly $20 million into Ohio’s coffers.
DraftKings takes gold
| Online Operator | January Handle | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $301 million | $32.5 million |
| FanDuel | $295.3 million | $39.1 million |
| bet365 | $78 million | $9 million |
| BetMGM | $68.9 million | $3.4 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $52.8 million | $5.2 million |
| Caesars | $31.6 million | $2.6 million |
DraftKings took home the top handle in Ohio sports betting for January, generating $301 million in wagers that matched December’s bets for the online operator. However, FanDuel used a 13.2% hold on a $295.3-million handle to produce $39.1 million, nearly $7 million more than DraftKings, which still had an impressive 10.8% win rate.
January was also good to bet365, which won back 11.5% on a $78-million handle to finish in third place for both wagers and revenue. BetMGM wasn’t so fortunate, finishing the month with a 4.9% hold on a $68.9-million handle.
Fanatics reached a double-digit win rate on a $52.8-million handle, while Caesars stayed in single digits on $31.6 million in wagers.
Other online books
After winning over $4 million in its first month as theScore Bet, PENN Entertainment’s online platform produced a little under $2.5 million in January. Despite the month-over-month profit dip, theScore Bet generated a 5.9% handle increase from December, finishing close to Caesars with $29.97 million in wagers.
That easily beat out Hard Rock Bet’s $23.6-million handle, but the Seminole Tribe-owned operator had a better hold with 9.6% compared to theScore Bet’s 8.3% win rate. Prime Sportsbook produced the lowest hold of all operators in January, failing to reach 3% on an $18.4-million handle.
