Pennsylvania’s online sports betting industry started 2026 off on the back foot in terms of betting volume, seeing a near 10% decrease during a $747.8-million month, though it certainly was not doom and gloom for sportsbooks in January.
Key Takeaways
- The Philadelphia Eagles' early playoff exit likely meant less excitement for NFL betting than the previous January.
- Despite the drop in handle, revenue was up significantly.
- Higher profits meant a 37.5% year-over-year increase in tax revenue.
Pennsylvania online sports betting produced $830.4 million in wagers during January 2025 during the build-up to the Philadelphia Eagles’ push to a Super Bowl triumph over the Kansas City Chiefs. But fate wasn’t as kind to the Eagles this year. The Birds were sent packing by the San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round, coinciding with a steep drop in total wagers during the first month of the year.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reported that despite the dwindling pot, sportsbooks’ revenue total was up 37.5% year over year. That’s representative of a growing national trend of sportsbooks producing higher holds, or generating more revenue on a per-dollar basis.
The state collected $23 million in gaming taxes, which was also a 37.5% year-over-year increase.
Enjoying Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account
FanDuel continues to lead
| Operator | Handle (online) | Revenue (online) |
|---|---|---|
| FanDuel | $274.8 million | $27.5 million |
| DraftKings | $234 million | $22.6 million |
| Fanatics | $55.6 million | $5.5 million |
| BetMGM | $49 million | $3.6 million |
| BetRivers | $32.3 million | $1.8 million |
| theScore Bet | $30.7 million | $2.3 million |
| Caesars | $22.4 million | $872,398 |
FanDuel, which is partnered with Valley Forge and Live! Casino Philadelphia, topped the charts yet again. The nation’s leader in sports betting reported $274.8 million in online handle and $27.5 million in online revenue, which, however, marked year-over-year decreases of 17% and 4.2%, respectively.
Hollywood Casino at The Meadows partner DraftKings reported $234 million in handle and $22.6 million in revenue, marking year-over-year bumps of 7% and 51.1%.
Fanatics, a Hollywood Casino York partner, posted $55.6 million in revenue, which was up 3.7% from the same month last year, as well as $5.5 million in revenue, which was a substantial improvement from the sportsbook finishing $1.9 million in the red last January.
BetMGM (Hollywood Casino Morgantown) produced $49 million in handle and $3.6 million in revenue. That marked a 27.5% decrease in handle but a 7.6% increase in revenue year over year.
BetRivers’ $32.3-million handle was down 10.3% year over year, but its $1.8 million in revenue was up 12.3%.
theScore Bet, formerly ESPN BET (Hollywood Casino at Penn National), posted $30.7 million in wagers and $2.3 million in revenue. The handle was down 23.7% from the January 2025 total, but the revenue was more than 6.6 times higher.
Caesars (Harrah’s) claimed a $22.4-million handle, down 17% year over year, and $872,398 in revenue, up 66.3%.
Pennsylvania stays at the front
The state’s January performance is similar to that of December, when sportsbooks’ revenue surged 118.5% despite losing 10.7% from their handle.
Even with the declining wagers, Pennsylvania has proved to have one of the largest gaming markets in the country. It’s also one of the very few that have legalized online sports betting, land-based casinos, and online casino gaming (iGaming).
