Maryland Lottery and Gaming reported sports wagering handle of $497.1 million for the month of December, the first full month the state’s seven mobile operators conducted business.
The handle vaults the Old Line State into the picture for a potential top 10 status for state monthly handle rankings, with December’s figures in line with those typically seen in Michigan, Indiana, and Tennessee. Mobile wagering had been a long time coming in Maryland, as the state agency took a deliberative approach that was at times frustrating to a market that saw retail wagering launch in December 2021.
Operators continued to offer bonuses and promotional play at an incredibly aggressive level, reporting deductions totaling $71 million that lifted the total to $134 million for mobile sportsbooks including November. Both mobile and retail sportsbooks pasted the betting public, with the online group of seven claiming $82.3 million in gross revenue and the statewide total at $85.2 million, good for a 17.1% hold.
The stunning figure made Maryland one of just five states to surpass $80 million in monthly revenue in the post-PASPA era, along with New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and Pennsylvania. It was also nearly triple the $30.5 million generated in November that was aided by the small window of mobile wagering availability.
Though overall adjusted revenue from all operators totaled nearly $13 million, negative net adjusted revenue mobile operators were allowed to carry over from November meant that less than $300,000 of that total could be taxed. The nearly $45,000 in mobile sports wagering taxes in December was barely more than 10% of the overall $440,000 generated statewide including retail betting.
Maryland sportsbooks generated $6.1 million in tax receipts for the calendar year, including $3.7 million for fiscal year 2022-23.
FanDuel and DraftKings pace online rout
Runnning Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state for December:
1 New York $1.63B
2 Maryland $497.1M
3 Iowa $229.9M
4 West Virginia ~$66M
5 Delaware $8.2M
6 Montana $7.2M
7 TBD
8 TBD
9 TBD
10 TBD#GamblingTwitter— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) January 10, 2023
Unsurprisingly, FanDuel and DraftKings were 1-2 among mobile operators for handle and gross revenue, with the former accounting for nearly half the handle with $236.2 million. It put up a 19.1% win rate to claim $45.2 million in gross revenue, which allowed it to outpace an aggressive promotional spend of $39.6 million for the month. The $5.1 million in adjusted revenue put a noticeable dent in its overall negative AGR, dropping that total to minus-$13.4 million.
Not known for high win rates, DraftKings enjoyed plenty of success in Maryland in December with a 16.6% mark as it kept $26.3 million of the $157.8 million worth of bets. It also did not skimp on the offers, with $22.5 million in credits resulting in a net AGR of $3.4 million. DraftKings is slightly behind its eternal rival for overall net AGR at minus $13.8 million.
BetMGM was a solid third for both categories, squeaking over the $6 million mark in revenue from $42.3 million handle for a 14.2% hold. Its promotional spend was just shy of $5 million for December.
Barstool Sportsbook edged out Caesars Sportsbook for fourth in handle by less than $1 million, having accepted $16.4 million in bets. Its 11.6% win rate resulted in $1.9 million in gross revenue, and the $560,000 in adjusted revenue was enough to land Barstool in the black since launch and make a tax payment of just under $3,000. Caesars also moved into the plus side for net AGR, making a tax payment of $34,000. It had a 12.2% hold on $15.6 million handle, resulting in $1.9 million in gross revenue and $320,000 adjusted.
PointsBet added to its negative AGR in December, tacking on $31,000 on top of the net loss of $35,000 in November. The Australian-based book had nearly $800,000 in gross revenue from $6.7 million handle, resulting in an 11.7% hold.
BetRivers, meanwhile, is the only mobile book to make tax payments in both months, as $53,111 of its $255,162 in revenue was eligible for taxation. It was also the only mobile book to fail to post a double-digit hold at 7.9%, while its overall promotional spend has barely exceeded $250,000 in the state.
Brick-and-mortars again administer beatings
The win rate on brick-and-mortar wagering was a robust 15.2% on $18.9 million handle as those sportsbooks claimed $2.9 million in revenue. It was the 11th time in 13 months that in-person betting resulted in a double-digit win rate, and those sportsbooks have carried the day when it comes to tax revenue for Maryland. Retail betting has generated close to $1.1 million worth of tax receipts since mobile launched.
MGM National Harbor and Live! Casino accounted for the bulk of the handle with a combined $12.7 million worth of action placed at the two locales. MGM pounded the public to the tune of a 19.6% hold — extending its run of double-digit win-rate months to six — and cleared $1 million in revenue for the fifth consecutive month.
Live!, whose sportsbook is run by FanDuel, saw its win rate chopped to 9% compared to 19.1% in November and collected $527,000. Live! also finished as the state’s top retail sportsbook for handle and revenue for the calendar year at $131.4 million and $17.7 million, respectively.
Riverboat on the Potomac, which is run by PointsBet, became the first retail sportsbook in state history to post a monthly loss as bettors came out $6,252 ahead on $85,000 wagered.
In its first full month of operation, Long Shot’s generated more than $175,000 handle and reported close to $42,000 in revenue for a healthy 23.6% hold.
