DraftKings Sportsbook is the new, well, king of Michigan sports betting operators. For August, at least.
(Sorry, not sorry that we went there.)
Anyway, in a first in Michigan, DraftKings took the top spot away from FanDuel Sportsbook for the month, according to numbers released Thursday by the Michigan Gaming Control Board. FanDuel had led every previous month since the Jan. 22 launch of Michigan online sports betting.
DK took $61.4 million in online sports bets last month, good for a 31.9% market share of an overall $192.3 million total bet online. That DraftKings mark topped the $47.7 million for FanDuel (24.8% share). BetMGM Sportsbook was third at $43.7 million (22.7% share). The trio are well ahead of the state’s 11 other sports betting operators.
The August numbers were aided by the return of a sprinkling of regular-season college football games, as well as preseason NFL football action. August saw a 2.3% uptick in online sports betting handle from the $188.0 million wagered in July.
August total pushes Michigan over $2 billion wagered in 2021
When added with sports wagers at Detroit casinos, players have now wagered more than $2 billion on sports in Michigan this year.
August’s online haul brought the yearly total to $2.07 billion of handle when combined with sports bets made at the downtown Detroit casinos.
Since the Jan. 22 launch of online sports betting, $1.88 billion in sports bets has been placed via mobile means in Michigan through August. In addition, $187.1 million in sports bets have been placed at Greektown Casino, MGM Grand Detroit and MotorCity Casino.
In August, Michigan online sports betting operators contributed $540,706 in state taxes and payments, and $216,699 in taxes and fees to the city of Detroit.
| Licensee | Online Brand | Total Handle | Online Handle | Retail Handle | Revenue (GGR) | Promos | State Tax | Local Tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bay Mills | DraftKings | $61,366,232 | $61,366,232 | ? | $4,382,519 | $2,219,687 | $181,678 | $0 |
| MotorCity | FanDuel | $50,816,224 | $47,654,287 | $3,161,937 | $5,044,800 | $1,558,844 | $200,088 | $133,398 |
| MGM Grand Detroit | BetMGM | $47,997,913 | $43,668,283 | $4,329,630 | $4,711,482 | $1,887,219 | $148,261 | $113,771 |
| Greektown | Barstool | $21,931,297 | $13,134,693 | $8,796,603 | $1,307,139 | $220,786 | $52,003 | $45,762 |
| Grand Traverse | Caesars | $10,025,422 | $10,025,422 | ? | $162,383 | $733,580 | $0 | $0 |
| Lac Vieux Desert | PointsBet | $6,193,759 | $6,193,759 | ? | $939,617 | $856,378 | $0 | $0 |
| Little River | BetRivers | $3,138,513 | $3,138,513 | ? | $236,884 | $97,977 | $0 | $0 |
| Little Traverse Bay | Fox Bet | $2,494,696 | $2,494,696 | ? | $328,911 | $78,362 | $21,046 | $0 |
| Nottawaseppi Huron | FireKeepers | $1,105,872 | $1,105,872 | ? | $109,987 | $100,123 | $0 | $0 |
| Hannahville | TwinSpires | $1,004,706 | $1,004,706 | ? | $109,846 | $104,897 | $0 | $0 |
| Sault Ste. Marie | WynnBet | $883,496 | $883,496 | ? | $95,820 | $70,638 | $0 | $0 |
| Keweenaw Bay | Golden Nugget | $668,503 | $668,503 | ? | $3,049 | $40,817 | $0 | $0 |
| Pokagon | Four Winds | $483,992 | $483,992 | ? | $16,666 | $261,754 | $0 | $0 |
| Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish | Play Gun Lake | $455,331 | $455,331 | ? | $87,231 | $99,325 | $0 | $0 |
| Total | $208,565,955 | $192,277,785 | $16,288,170 | $17,536,332 | $8,330,386 | $603,077 | $292,931 |
Caesars up, Barstool down as football kicks off
Caesars Sportsbook had a great boost after rebranding from William Hill in early August. The book was fifth with $10.0 million of handle, a jump of 32.9% from July.
Meanwhile, Barstool Sportsbook stayed relatively steady with $13.1 million in sports bets, fourth place in the market and down just 3.6% from July. After slightly gaining month-over-month market share in July for the first time, Barstool dipped again in August, dropping from 7.2% in July to 6.8% this month.
These are two brands we’ll be following closely in September as football really hits its stride.
