The state of Illinois has reached a new milestone for its sports betting market, posting a handle of almost $1.08 billion in September. This figure has also significantly contributed to a new national record of over $11.5 billion legally wagered on sports in a single month. Illinois has ranked third in terms of betting action for two consecutive months, trailing only behind New York and New Jersey.
September marked the sixth time in the past 12 months that Illinois’ sports betting operators surpassed the $1 billion mark in monthly bets. The new record surpassed the previous high of $1.07 billion in March by approximately $5.7 million.
Compared to the same month last year, there was an increase of almost 30% in handle, and, in relation to August 2023, a growth of almost 60% was observed. The annual cumulative of $7.8 billion represents an increase of 16.6% compared to the first three quarters of 2022.
This growth is linked to legislation allowing residents to register online on platforms, approved in 2021 and in effect since March of this year. Prior to that, signing up for online sportsbooks implied driving to a physical casino to complete the registration process.
The gross adjusted revenue of sports betting exceeded $86.2 million in September, from a hold just shy of 8%. Compared to the same month last year, revenue increased by almost 10%. Year-to-date revenue reached $688.4 million, a growth of 34.1% compared to the previous year.
In terms of taxes, the state collected more than $12.9 million just in September, totaling almost $103.3 million in the calendar year 2023. Cook County, including Chicago, significantly contributed to this collection, with over $925,000 in taxes from $46.3 million in revenue.
Illinois’ betting market was also impacted by the arrival of the eighth mobile betting app, Circa Sports, at the end of September. It had a handle of $225,591 from September 28 to 30, ending with a hold of 0.7% in completed events, keeping $1,350 of the $189,868 in accepted wagers. In retail, the physical sportsbook, located at The Temporary casino in Waukegan, recorded about $36,000 in handle.
The opening of a new retail sports betting point with Harrah’s Metropolis, located on the southern border with Kentucky, also contributed $23,906 in winnings from $98,544 in completed events, a win rate of 24.3%.
Overall, DraftKings led the market with a total of $402.9 million in bets, the highest result among mobile sports betting operators, and revenue of $30.5 million from $398.8 million in completed events, representing a retention of 7.7%.
FanDuel, in turn, had the highest revenue with $32.4 million. However, its 9.3% win rate from $348.6 million in completed events handle marked its first time below a 10% hold in consecutive months since January-March of last year.
The preference for parlay bets stood out in September, with a total handle of $298.3 million in this category. This amount was only surpassed by the record of $303.5 million in such bets accepted in January.