3 Takeaways From Michigan Online Sportsbooks’ Strong Showing In March

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Sports betting in the state of Michigan continued its impressive streak with another robust month in March 2024.

In a month typically devoid of NFL action, bettors at Michigan online sportsbooks collectively wagered over $450 million.

Retail numbers were combined with betting figures, resulting in Michigan’s total bets reaching almost $478 million last month.

In addition to the impressive performance, there were a few intriguing details intertwined within the figures.

BetMGM Michigan tops DraftKings in March, again

In the realm of online sports betting in Michigan, three operators consistently vie for the highest ranks every month: FanDuel Sportsbook MI, DraftKings Sportsbook MI, and BetMGM Michigan.

While FanDuel maintains a significant advantage in the overall online handle race, DraftKings has closely trailed behind on several occasions.

BetMGM, typically a strong contender in third place, surpassed DraftKings in both online handle and revenue by a significant margin in March 2024. The surpassing amounts were over $5 million in online handle and more than $6 million in revenue.

BetMGM secured the second position in the state, amassing a total of $108.1 million in online handle during the previous month. DraftKings, on the other hand, claimed the third spot with $102.9 million.

March 2021 marked the last time BetMGM outperformed DraftKings in terms of monthly online handle numbers, which is quite intriguing.

In the past year, BetMGM generated $92.6 million in online handle, resulting in a revenue of $9.6 million. During the same period, DraftKings recorded $76.5 million in online handle, leading to a revenue of $6 million.

Promo dollars in 2021 showed slight variations, but in March of this year, MGM nearly doubled the promotional spending compared to DraftKings, with $4.7 million versus $2.5 million.

Speculating about the reasons behind BetMGM’s consistent March leap over DraftKings is challenging since they chose not to provide any comments on the matter. However, it is highly likely that they aim to repeat this success without waiting another year.

Stronger showing for Michigan online sports bettors

In-state bettors had a disappointing performance in March 2021.

Sportsbooks had a successful year, ending with a 9.1% hold.

After a year, Michigan managed to improve and reduce the hold to 6.8%.

Even with a nearly $100 million increase in wagers from the previous year, the overall revenue for the books remained relatively unchanged.

The recent NCAA Tournament was not entirely predictable either. Although a top seed ultimately emerged as the champion, there were still significant upsets throughout the competition.

There were a total of five teams, seeded 8 or higher, who managed to reach the Sweet 16. Among them, North Carolina, an 8 seed, unfortunately let slip a substantial lead in the national championship game against Kansas.

Michigan bettors may have taken advantage of the expanded NCAA Women’s Tournament betting options this year.

In-state bettors may have reaped benefits as Michigan progressed to the Elite 8 in the tournament.

The women’s tournament mainly consisted of the top seeds, including three No. 1 teams and a No. 2 (UConn, known as the biggest powerhouse in the sport), making up the Final Four.

Nearly 20% jump in wagers at Michigan sportsbooks

March’s report also highlighted a significant increase in handle compared to March 2021.

The total amount of wagers increased by 19.7% compared to last year, resulting in a rise from $383.7 million in 2021 to $478 million in 2024.

In February, the initial complete month of Year 2 for online sports betting, there was a notable surge of 23.2% in wagering compared to the previous year.

However, it should be noted that in February and March of 2021, there were only 12 online operators available, which may impact the significance of these increases. In 2024, the number of online operators increased to 14. Notably, a new addition to the market is Eagle Casino & Sports, which launched last week, making it the 15th online option available.

August of 2021 marked the inaugural month with 14 operators in service. Thus, August of 2024 holds the potential to provide us with the most accurate assessment of the sports betting industry’s year-on-year growth.

Despite this, the growth and interest in sports betting in Michigan show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

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