SPORTS BETTING
US – Illinois sportsbooks hit record $840m in bets in October
By Phil - 9 December 2021
Illinois sportsbooks reached a new monthly record for wagering and revenue for the first time since the reinstatement of in-person registration. With more than $840m in wagers, Illinois joined the top 18 legal sports betting markets in the US that — using five weekends of football, the opening of the NBA season, and baseball’s postseason — set a market wagering record in October.
“A calendar with an extra weekend of NFL and college football, the opening of the NBA and NHL seasons, and baseball’s postseason was always going to bring more action than a quieter month,” said Eric Ramsey, analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network, which includes PlayIllinois.com. “Regardless, a new high highlights the continued strength of Illinois’ market, and it should grow even stronger in the coming months.”
Retail and online sportsbooks combined to handle $840.4m in wagers in October, shattering the record of $633.6m set in March, according to official data released Tuesday. Wagers were up 40.9% from $596.5 million in September and up 93.4 per cent from $434.6m in October 2020.
Gross revenue rose 2.9 per cent to $48.3m in October from $47m in October 2020 and up 8.4 per cent from $44.6m in September. October’s revenue still fell short of the record $49.9m in gross revenue set in March. Taxable revenue did reach a record, though, to $52.6m in adjusted gross revenue, yielding $8.5m in state and local taxes.
Illinois’ sportsbooks had not recorded a record month since the return of in-person online registration in April. Illinois ranked No. 3 in March among all US markets with $633.6m in wagers, behind only New Jersey ($859.6m) and Nevada ($640.8m). Illinois still ranked No. 3 in October, but has lost ground to New Jersey ($1.3bn) and Nevada ($1.1bn) — the first two states to surpass $1bn in wagers in a month.
But with HB 3136 awaiting signature, which would do away with in-person registration early next year, perhaps a $1bn month could soon come to Illinois.
“The Illinois sports betting market is thriving in spite of the current online registration rules, so it’s exciting to imagine what it will look like when sportsbooks are untethered,” said Joe Boozell, lead analyst for PlayIllinois.com. “A surge of new operators will certainly come. And there are an untold number of Illinoisans sitting on the sidelines interested in making a bet through an online sportsbook, but not enough to make a trip to a retail sportsbook to register.”
October’s growth was a direct result of the month’s busy sports calendar. Five weekends of football attracted $330.1m in wagers on the sport. The opening of the NBA season, including a hot start by the Chicago Bulls, drove $93.3m in action on basketball.
“The Bears’ struggles are dampening bettor enthusiasm somewhat, but NFL wagering isn’t dictated as much by the success of local teams as other sports,” Ramsey said. “The early success of the Bulls, however, and the short playoff run by the White Sox, were a definite help.”
Online betting accounted for $803.4m of the wagers in October, or 95.6 per cent of the state’s total handle. DraftKings/Casino Queen led the state with $315.3m in combined online and retail handle, including $308.8m in online wagers. The combined handle was up from $236.5m in September and produced $11.7m in gross revenue.
FanDuel was next with $236.7m in online and retail wagers, including $235.4m in online wagering. The combined handle was up from $156.2m in September and created a market-best $22.3m in gross revenue.
“With only six in the state, Illinois is home to far fewer online sportsbook operators than any other major US market,” Boozell said. “By next year, the number of online operators should grow well into the double-digits. An increase in competition would be hugely beneficial for bettors.”
