Illinois Records a Sports Betting Total of $971 Million in March
In March 2022, Illinois saw a record-breaking $971 million in traditional sports wagering handle, according to the Illinois Gaming Board. This impressive figure was largely driven by the excitement surrounding the NCAA Tournament and NBA action. Noteworthy, this handle surpassed the record outside of New Jersey, Nevada, and New York in the post-PASPA era.
The completed events handle totaled close to $954 million, with basketball accounting for over $540 million. The Illinois Gaming Board previously reported more than $286.2 million in handle from the men's and women's NCAA Tournaments, and overall college wagering for March reached $350.8 million, as almost five million bets were placed.
Gross sports wagering revenue totaled nearly $62 million, resulting in a hold of 6.5%. After accounting for carryover losses from January and February, state taxes were just shy of $9.1 million, while Cook County received more than $660,000 in taxes from nearly $33.2 million in revenue generated within county boundaries, which includes Chicago.
handle surged 43% versus February's $679.3 million, and revenue spiked 70.3% compared to the previous month, aided by BetMGM launching as the state's seventh mobile operator. Although year-for-year comparisons aren't exact, handle climbed 53.4% against March 2021, while revenue increased 36.8% despite a win rate nearly three-quarters of a point lower.
BetMGM, the first new online operator in Illinois in roughly a year, had a relatively strong start with a traditional handle of slightly more than $43.6 million, edging out Caesars for sixth among the now seven mobile sportsbooks. FanDuel claimed handle honors, becoming the first mobile operator in Illinois to surpass $300 million in traditional handle at $310.7 million. FanDuel also topped the online double of finishing first in handle and revenue, claiming more than $24.8 million in revenue from $308.4 million in completed events handle for an 8.1% hold.
As usually the case in Illinois, parlay wagering has resulted in the lion's share of state operator revenue. It was $33.9 million in March, more than half the overall total, as the 15.8% win rate was easily the highest in any category with at least $5 million handle. FanDuel continued to dominate this space with close to $17.8 million from $97.1 million bet, generating a 18.3% win rate.
Rivers Casino, the top casino in Illinois, flexed its retail sportsbook muscle in March with $21.6 million, the most of any brick-and-mortar venue in the state, accounting for nearly half the $43.7 million for in-person handle. The precise ranking of top mobile sportsbooks by handle and revenue for March 2022 isn't explicitly detailed in the available information. Illinois sports betting handle for that month was $927,534,935, while revenue was $57,321,098.
- In March 2022, parlay wagering in Illinois generated over $33.9 million, representing half of the overall sports betting revenue.
- FanDuel, one of the mobile sportsbooks in Illinois, had a strong performance in parlay wagering, earning close to $17.8 million from $97.1 million in bets.
- Illinois sports betting handle in March 2022 was $927,534,935, with basketball accounting for the majority of it, totaling over $540 million.
