Indiana Sportsbooks Confirm Expected Revenue Drop In April

Sports betting in Indiana started 2023 on a low note, and this trend continued into April. Sportsbooks in the Hoosier State saw a 25.8% decrease in wagers, accepting $321.4 million compared to $433 million in March.

The handle also saw a year-over-year decrease for the seventh consecutive month, falling 10.7% from the $360 million bet in April 2022.

However, the month-on-month and year-on-year decreases were anticipated. April is traditionally a slower month for sports betting in Indiana compared to March, and since Ohio entered the market on January 1, it has taken a portion of Indiana’s share.

FanDuel leads Indiana sports betting handle for April

FanDuel Sportsbook and DraftKings Sportsbook, the two largest operators in Indiana like in the rest of the country, accounted for nearly two-thirds of all betting activity in April. Combined, they managed over $207 million in mobile bets.

FanDuel, with a valuation of $106 million, regained the leading position from DraftKings, valued at $101.3 million, for the first time since July 2022. FanDuel continued to lead in revenue as well, reporting an income of $11.8 million compared to DraftKings’ $8.9 million.

The remaining competitors lagged considerably. BetMGM Sportsbook ranked third with a handle of $34.2 million and revenue of $3.3 million. Caesars Sportsbook’s handle of $27.2 million was approximately 80% of that of BetMGM. However, with a revenue of $1.5 million, it was less than half of BetMGM’s.

Four additional operators surpassed handles of $5 million, but none reached $10 million: BetRivers with $9.3 million, Barstool with $7.7 million, PointsBet with $7.1 million, and Hard Rock Sportsbook with $6.7 million. However, all four reported less than $1 million in monthly revenue.

Basketball is not pulling its share.

Despite the Pacers not making the playoffs, NBA betting recorded the highest number of bets from a single sport. Even though parlays are counted separately, basketball probably made the most substantial contribution to that category as well.

Basketball bets saw a significant decrease from the previous April, with football and other sports also experiencing a drop. However, parlays maintained their levels.

Surprisingly, only baseball demonstrated solid year-over-year growth.

• Football: $3.8 million (Year-on-Year decrease by 10%)
• Basketball: $90.3 million (Down 30.1% Year on Year)
• Baseball: $61.2 million (an increase of 8.0% year-on-year)
• Parlay: $91.6 million (an increase of 1.0% Year over Year)
• Other: $74 million (Year-on-Year decrease of 3.4%)

Markets reaching maturity

Sports betting in Indiana has seen consistent annual growth since its legalization in 2019. However, 2023 is expected to witness a downturn. At the beginning of the year, Play Indiana predicted a handle of $4.1 billion in 2023, which is almost a 10% drop from $4.5 billion in 2022.

One reason could be that Indiana has reached its growth limit. Its expansion couldn’t continue indefinitely, especially given that it lacks the tourist attractions that neighboring states such as Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan possess.

The launch of Ohio’s betting market on January 1 also plays a role in Indiana’s totals. From January to March, Ohio residents bet almost $2.5 billion, quickly making it one of the top betting markets in the country.

Kentucky joined the poaching party on March 31 by legalizing sports betting. As a result, all of Indiana’s border states will have legalized sports betting upon its launch.

In other words, when viewed from another perspective, we can recognize that Ohio and Kentucky are joining a national trend of states legalizing sports betting. Indiana, having been ahead of the curve, capitalized on the situation when its neighboring states were yet to do so.

As more states legalize sports betting, we will persist in obtaining a precise understanding of the actual market size of each state.

There’s no shame in the betting volume of Indiana.

Indiana is expected to rank just beyond the top 10 in terms of total bets for the year, a commendable position that could generate almost $350 million in revenue.

Tax revenue is maintaining a steady flow. In April, an additional $2.8 million was added to the state’s treasury, pushing the year-to-date total close to $13 million, marking a 20% increase compared to the same period last year.

Indiana isn’t the same as Ohio, nor does it need to be. Ohio’s revenue has already exceeded $1.5 billion for the year, a figure that many states can only aspire to.