Maryland Sportsbooks Gross $58.7M In October Revenue

Maryland Lottery and Gaming reported Monday that the state’s sportsbooks claimed more than $58.7 million in gross sports wagering revenue for the month of October, with operators receiving most of their winnings via parlay bets.

It was the third-highest haul for Maryland sportsbooks in 23 months of overall wagering, behind the $85.2 million accrued last December in the first full month of mobile betting and the $59.6 million in winnings to start 2023. The $483.1 million wagered in October ranks second all-time, trailing only the $497.1 million worth of accepted wagers last December.

The statewide hold on gross revenue was 12.2%, the 20th time it was 10% or higher, as the hold on parlays was 21.1% on $179.5 million handle. That resulted in a windfall of $37.8 million in revenue, representing nearly 65% of the overall amount. In the five months Maryland Lottery and Gaming has broken out handle and revenue by sport category, operators have won $116.4 million from parlay bets while crafting a 20.6% win rate.

Despite a robust promotional spend of close to $19.4 million by operators in October, the adjusted gross revenue of $38.7 million eligible for taxation was an all-time high. The state saw an inflow of more than $5.8 million into its tax coffers for the month, lifting the 2023 year-to-date total to nearly $36.5 million.

FanDuel continues to beat down the public

FanDuel extended one of the more impressive streaks in the industry space, making it 12 times in as many months with a 10% or higher hold in Maryland. October’s win rate of 13.4% was only its eighth-best, but the $210.5 million handle — its high for 2023 and second-best overall — resulted in $28.3 million in revenue, ranking third in the 12 months it has accepted bets. FanDuel has an all-time hold of 14.6% in Maryland, claiming more than $271.8 million in revenue.

The online juggernaut was not afraid to reach into its pockets to maintain a dominant market share, offering a state-high $8.3 million in promotional credits in October. That was down slightly from September and lifted its outlay for the year to $56.3 million.

DraftKings was a solid but distant second to its eternal rival while posting 2023 highs in handle and revenue. It kept $19.4 million of $157.6 million wagered in fashioning a year-best 12.3% win rate. The handle total came within $260,000 of its all-time high established last December. DraftKings pulled back on its promotional spend in October at $6.9 million, nearly $2 million less than September as its 2023 total topped $41 million.

BetMGM rounded out the podium spots for revenue and handle, collecting almost $4.7 million in winnings from $38.5 million worth of accepted wagers. It’s 12.2% hold mirrored the overall win rate for the state and marked the 11th time in 12 months it reached double digits.

Fanatics continued to operate at a loss when it came to adjusted revenue, finishing nearly $265,000 in the red despite gross revenue reaching nearly $1.1 million. The good news was that month-over-month handle was up 14.7% from September to $13.7 million while promotional spend dropped 45.7% to $1.3 million. Fanatics’ overall loss in AGR since launching in May is more than $2.5 million.

In between BetMGM and Fanatics was Caesars, which had an all-time high for handle at $21.8 million. The $1.6 million-plus in revenue ranks third all-time and lifted its year-to-date gross revenue above $10 million.

The revenue distribution among operators in the state will likely look different starting with the next monthly report, as ESPN BET is set to launch in Maryland on Nov. 14.

Bingo World takes a hit on the retail side

The overall retail numbers in Maryland were solid, as the 13 sportsbooks combined for nearly $2 million in gross revenue from $19.6 million handle while posting a hold of 10.1%.

Bingo World absorbed the retail sportsbooks’ biggest loss of 2023, however, as bettors came out $144,253 ahead on almost $1.3 million in wagers. It was the first monthly loss for Bingo World since launching in July 2022, and it was just its second monthly hold below 8%.

Bingo World’s loss is the third-largest among brick-and-mortar venues in state history, behind the $182,357 loss at Live! Casino in March and the $169,307 loss reported by MGM National Harbor in August. National Harbor has bounced back strongly in the two months since that loss and came out nearly $900,000 ahead in October on the strength of a 16% hold.

House fares well in baseball betting

The AL East champion Baltimore Orioles crashing out of the postseason in the divisional round helped provide an October boost to operators, who claimed more than $4.1 million in baseball revenue while posting a 12.8% hold.

Pro football wagering paced single-event wagering, with $91.6 million worth of bets placed and operators keeping $6 million for a 6.6% win rate. The house fared better with college gridiron wagering, attaining an 8.2% hold to keep $3.8 million from $46.5 million handle.

NBA betting provided $3.1 million in revenue, while tennis rounded out the top five for revenue of sport-specific totals at $2.4 million. The public posted an emphatic win in golf wagering for October, coming out $287,249 ahead on nearly $950,000 wagered to hit the books with a minus-30.4% hold.