Michigan Sports Betting Finishes Off Big Year
The Michigan Gaming Control Board has released the sports betting numbers from December, and sportsbooks set another record. The total sports betting handle was $514.7 million in wagers, which was slightly past the previous record of $500.5 million in November.
Online sportsbooks once again saw the majority of the betting action in Michigan, as the total online handle was $484.6 million. The retail sports betting handle came in at $30.1 million, representing growth, but it was not a record.
Michigan saw more than $4 billion in wagers placed on sporting events in 2021, and that was done in less than one year. This state has consistently been one of the seven largest sports betting markets in the U.S., and more growth could be coming in 2022.
Sportsbooks in Michigan did post some disappointing revenue numbers for the month as the total gross gaming revenue was just $12.0 million. Michigan sportsbooks had gross gaming revenue of $38.8 million in November, and NFL football played a vital role in that massive total.
Even though Michigan continues to see more wagers placed, the state has not seen a massive amount of sports betting tax revenue come in. The tax revenue for the month of December was just $785,000 after the state received more than $1.7 million in November.
DraftKings, FanDuel Battling it Out
Michigan is a state with numerous sportsbooks up and running, but three operators have risen above the rest of the pack. DraftKings and FanDuel continue to be the two biggest sportsbooks in Michigan, and BetMGM is right behind them each month.
For the month of December, DraftKings once again had the highest sports betting handle at $120.3 million. FanDuel was right behind them for the month as this operator’s total sports betting handle was $119.9 million.
The yearly battle went a bit differently as it was FanDuel that had the highest total sports betting handle at $993 million. DraftKings made a late push over the last five months, and it closed the year with a total handle of $951.1 million.
Online Casinos, Poker Perform Well
Michigan launched online casinos and online poker back in January 2021, and those two industries also performed exceptionally well. This state became the first in the history of the United States to have a revenue of more than $1 billion in the first year.
The gross gaming revenue for December in the state of Michigan was $121.8 million, and that total was good enough to break the previous record that was set back in October. New Jersey and Pennsylvania both went over the $1 billion mark in annual revenue back in October, and they remain the biggest markets in the U.S.
