Iowa Sportsbooks Have Big August
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission has announced the sports betting numbers for the month of August. Sportsbooks in the state saw a boost in the betting action, and those sportsbooks also had a very profitable month.
The biggest news from the most recent report was the fact that the total sports betting revenue for the month was $14.4 million. Legal sports betting has been available for a total of 37 months, and the $14.4 million was the second-highest monthly total on record.
2022 has been a pretty big year for this industry though as there have been three months that have seen over $14 million in revenue. This figure of $14.4 million was an increase of nearly 30% from what sportsbooks were able to bring in during the month of July.
What made the revenue so high for the month of August was the fact that sportsbooks nearly won 12% of all wagers that were placed. This was the fourth-highest hold rate posted by Iowa sportsbooks, and the only three months that were better came in the first three months of operation.
The total sports betting handle for the month was $122.6 million, and that was a huge jump from the total in July. Iowa should see an even bigger boost when the September numbers are announced as both college and NFL football have started.
Big Three Setting the Tone
Iowa continues to be a state with a long list of sports betting options, but bettors continue to flock to three main operators. Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel all continue to be among the group of leaders, and there really isn’t even another sports betting operator that is challenging to join that group.
These three sportsbooks not only saw most of the action, but each was able to win over 10% of all wagers that were placed. DraftKings Sportsbook was once again the most popular option in the state as it posted a total handle of $33.2 million, and a revenue of $3.5 million.
FanDuel Sportsbook posted a total handle of slightly more than $29 million, and Caesars saw over $22 million in wagers. While these three operators saw a majority of the action, there were other sportsbooks that posted big numbers as well.
Retail Sportsbooks Post Huge Wins
Online betting continues to be the top option for sports bettors, but the retail sportsbooks were able to win big in the month of August. There are 19 retail sportsbooks in Iowa and the total retail handle came in at $12.5 million.
While the betting action continued to be slow, retail sportsbooks in the state were able to post a hold rate of nearly 22 percent. Retail sportsbooks in Iowa had a revenue of $2.9 million in November 2021, and August was the second-highest revenue total with $2.7 million.
