The Massachusetts Gaming Commission reported sports betting revenue for May on Monday as the commonwealth’s six mobile operators combined for a collective 10.1% hold.
Despite the double-digit win rate and handle increasing 29.1% year-over-year to $587.3 million, revenue was down 16.6% from April’s haul of $50.6 million, with handle only 2.7% lower.
The Bay State was able to levy taxes on $57 million in adjusted gross revenue, which resulted in an inflow of $11.5 million into state coffers. The $55.3 million in receipts through the first five months of 2024 is $21.7 million ahead of last year’s pace, though it is not a like-for-like comparison since wagering did not begin in 2023 until Jan. 31, and mobile sports betting apps were not available until mid-March.
Massachusetts also sured $8 billion in handle since launch, with 97.3% of that amount — $7.79 billion — being wagered online.
For readers looking for more MA sports betting information, this latest report highlights both the growth in handle and the month-over-month revenue fluctuations that define a maturing market.
DraftKings Maintains Iron Grip on Home Turf 345m5c
Running May Top 10 #SportsBetting handles by state:
1 New York $1.98B
2 New Jersey $838.9M
3 MASS. $587.3M
4 North Carolina $525.5M
5 Maryland $431.5M
6 Tennessee $379.2M
7 Indiana $361.6M
8 Iowa $182.5M
9 Kansas $172.2M
10 Maine $39.9M#SportsBettingX #GamblingX— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) June 17, 2024
May marked the third time this year the collective mobile hold cracked 10% as FanDuel proved a formidable combination once more. Boston-based DraftKings finished $474,000 shy of its third straight month with $300 million in handle, but it crafted a solid 9.7% hold in claiming $29.1 million in winnings. It again exceeded 50% of the mobile market share while moving with $32.7 million of $4 billion in all-time handle.
FanDuel attained back-to-back holds of 11% or higher for the first time since a four-month run from April to July of last year, landing at 11.8% to keep $20.3 million of the $172.4 million worth of bets placed. It was the second time FanDuel had consecutive months with at least $20 million in revenue, also doing so last April and May.
It was a long fall-off to third as Fanatics Sportsbook. BetMGM had a hold of nearly 8% in collecting $3.1 million in revenue from $39.3 million in handle as its latter total eclipsed $500 million.
ESPN BET had the second-highest hold of the sextet at 9.7% in winning $2.5 million of the $25.9 million in wagers accepted. The May win rate was the best for the PENN Entertainment-owned mobile sportsbook since its 14.9% hold that came with predecessor Barstool Sportsbook when both books’ November numbers were tallied.
Fanatics Sportsbook rounded out the top five for revenue with $1.8 million compared to the $1.6 million for Caesars. Fanatics had an 8.9% hold on $19.8 million in handle while Caesars attained a 7.9% win rate on $20 million in bets placed. It was the best monthly hold in the Bay State for Caesars since reaching 9% last September.
MGM Springfield Takes Another Loss on the Retail Side 4n2h2k
Massachusetts’ three retail sportsbooks combined for $673,700 in gross winnings, fashioning a 6.6% hold from $10.2 million in handle.
MGM Springfield, though, dragged down that total as bettors came out $23,375 ahead on $1.1 million worth of bets. The payout was $163 less than last May, though its minus-2.1% hold was slightly worse as handle plunged 41.6% from last year. The back-to-back monthly losses for MGM Springfield have it down $85,124 for the year.
Encore Boston Harbor, meanwhile, had a double-digit hold for just the fourth time at 10.1% en route to $554,600 in revenue. Plainridge Park’s retail sportsbook had a second consecutive sub-4% hold in collecting $142,500 in winnings from $3.6 million in handle.
