Online sportsbooks in Michigan reported gross revenue in excess of $60 million for November, enjoying a good but not exceptional hold rate of 9%. That’s a giant step up from October when hold was a disappointing 5% and the resulting gross revenue from online sports betting activity in the state was only $32.2 million.
It’s also official that 2024 is a record-breaking year for Michigan sports betting. The state has broken its mark for total handle in a calendar year with a month to spare, as it approaches the elusive $5 billion milestone.
For the year, Michigan sportsbooks have now topped $400 million in gross revenue, at $449.8 million through November. Total handle in Michigan for November was $671.2 million, which represents the third consecutive month above half a billion in total wagers placed.
FanDuel and DraftKings Sportsbook remain the industry leaders in the state for online betting. FanDuel was the top dog, recording $254 million total handle in November, according to the Michigan Gaming Control Board. DraftKings reported $182.7 million in total handle. That means that between the two of them, FanDuel and DraftKings nearly two-thirds of the total handle in the Great Lakes State for the month.
The 15 online sports betting operators paid $2.67 million in taxes to the state from their revenue in November. Year-to-date, $20.9 million in taxes have been paid from licensed sports betting operators with $4.89 billion in total handle.
Michigan sports betting now over $80 million in lifetime taxes
Michigan sports betting operators have now paid in excess of $80 million in taxes since the state launched sportsbooks in 2021. The precise figure, according to the MGCB is $81,853,430.
Figures from November show that Michigan has now exceeded the highest total for wagers accepted in a single year. In 2022, $4.8 billion was reported in total handle. With $4.9 billion in total handle through Nov. 30, the state will smash the previous single-year mark. The success of the wildly popular Detroit Lions is likely helping to push sports betting activity to new levels in the fourth quarter.
With just under $4.9 billion in total handle through the first 11 months of 2024, Michigan is certain to eclipse $5 billion in total handle for the first time.
With November’s activity, FanDuel became the first operator to top $6 billion in lifetime total handle in Michigan. The company has paid $43.2 million in taxes to the state all-time, which represents more than half of all taxes from sports betting activity since Michigan launched sports betting in early 2021. Lifetime, FanDuel’s 11.2% hold percentage is by far the most successful for operators in Michigan. The next closest is BetMGM at 9.4%, and rival DraftKings is far back at 7.4%.
Fanatics Sportsbook had one of its best months in the state, reporting a hold percentage of 11.1%, the highest for the month. That resulted in more than $4 million in revenue for the company, which has its license in partnership with the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
Michigan has now achieved $18.6 billion in total handle since the state launched legal online sports betting in January of 2021. Total handle represents the dollar figure for all bets wagered on sports. It does not reveal the dollar figure won by consumers. The hold percentage indicates the percentage of the total wagers the sportsbooks keeps after bets are settled.
