Indiana Handle on Sports Betting Continues to Drop in May

The summer betting slump began in May, but the Hoosier State still managed to increase their revenue.

Indiana has little professional representation in the summer months, and with the Pacers ending their season below .500, May looks like it will start the state’s legal sports betting summer slump.

The Indiana Gaming Commission announced that the state accepted $283.4 million in bets last month, an 11.8% drop.

Thanks to a jump in hold percentage, Indiana’s tax revenue actually increased by 14.2% to $3.2 million, versus $2.8 million in April. The hold percentage from the sportsbooks hit 11.8%.

For the past several months, Indiana’s year-over-year handle has fallen short. May was the same, seeing an 8% drop. But for the past two months, the Hoosier State enjoyed a growth in its YoY tax bill.

FanDuel stays in the lead

FanDuel became the most popular of the online betting sites in April and stayed in its position in May, reporting $96.2 million in bets. DraftKings remained a close No. 2 with $93.8 million.

BetMGM, like FanDuel, held on to its new ranking in sports betting in Indiana, seeing $25.9 million in wagers versus Caesars’ $23.7 million.

Indiana’s decline also took a toll on the retail market, which saw an 18.3% drop.

Basketball sees the worst of May’s Drop

April gave Indiana bettors basketball and baseball, but in 2023, it appears that the NBA season fell in popularity.

Basketball bets fell 14.8% since last year, while baseball saw a smaller loss (6%) when compared to the statewide drop in handle.

MLB bets in May versus April did increase by 5.8%, but despite the jump, remained the No. 2 sport. Parlays were the most popular bet, seeing 27.6% of the total wagers.