Illinois Sports Betting Sees Massive Jump
Illinois is always one of the last states to announce sports betting numbers, and that was the case yet again. The Illinois Gaming Board just recently announced the September figures in Illinois, and this comes after some states are already announcing October figures.
The September Illinois sports betting handle was $596.5 million, and this was an increase of nearly 50 percent from August. The August total was just $400.4 million, but that was actually a step in the right direction after some rough summer months.
Once again nearly all of the betting was done online in Illinois as the mobile betting handle came in at $569.9 million. Illinois continues to see more than 90 percent of all bets placed online, and this is a trend that is found throughout the US as well.
Football was the most popular betting market in Illinois as it accounted for $227.3 million in wagers. Illinois does allow betting on college football, but sportsbooks aren’t allowed to accept wagers on in-state college teams.
Baseball was second on the list with a total handle of $116.3 million, and it could also be high on the list in the month of October as well. The NBA provided very little when it came to the total handle in September, but it will be a popular option when the October report comes out.
DraftKings Attracts Bets, FanDuel Brings in Revenue
DraftKings Sportsbook has partnered with the Casino Queen in East St. Louis and that operator has been the most popular option in the state. DraftKings posted a monthly sports betting handle of $236.4 million in September, with $232 million of that coming online.
FanDuel had a total handle of just $156.1 million, but that operator continues to set the tone when it comes to revenue. The FanDuel Sportsbook has a revenue of $18.03 million, which was nearly double of what DraftKings brought in.
There are still just six online sports betting options in Illinois, but it hasn’t stopped bettors from wagering at the sportsbooks. Illinois will be removing the in-person registration requirement in 2022, and that is likely when a new sportsbook will launch.
Still Number Three
It appears as if Illinois is going to end 2021 as the third-largest sports betting market, even though things could change over the next few months. New Jersey remains in the top overall spot, and Nevada has now surpassed Illinois as well.
A record was set in the month of September as New Jersey went over the $1 billion mark in monthly handle for the first time. Nevada posted a sports betting handle of nearly $790 million to set a new state record.
Florida recently launched online sports betting and New York is expected to do so at some point in 2022. It’s unclear how quickly these markets will grow, but they could both present a real challenge to the “Land of Lincoln.”
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