That’s A Record! Michigan Sports Bettors Wager $463.3 Million Online In October

Written By Matt Schoch on November 18, 2021

Michigan sports wagerers set a betting handle record in October by placing $463.3 million on athletics outcomes, according to numbers released Thursday by the Michigan Gaming Control Board.

Combined with the previously reported $34.2 million wagered in October at Detroit casinos, and at least $497.6 million was wagered overall in the state, good for another sports betting handle record in Michigan. This total does not include sports wagers placed at tribal casinos across the state.

Michigan sports betting launched in March 2020, with the online launch beginning in January 2021. The previous record for Michigan online wagering was March 2021, when $359.5 million was bet, while the cumulative record was this past September, when $386.8 million was bet online and in the Detroit casinos.

The month featured five football weekends and was the first full month of the NFL season. In addition, the Oct. 30 Michigan State victory over Michigan was a top-1o showdown that attracted huge betting interest.

There were signs big October numbers were coming, as on Wednesday, New Jersey reported a monthly U.S. record of $1.3 billion. Pennsylvania also took a record $776.3 million in sports bets in October.

FanDuel leads the way in October sports betting handle

FanDuel Sportsbook reclaimed the top spot in online sports betting handle after rival DraftKings Sportsbook held the crown the last two months.

FanDuel took in $124.0 million in handle and a 26.8% share. DraftKings accepted $120.4 million in online sports bets, good for a 26.0% market share.

BetMGM Sportsbook was third in the market ($102.2 million handle, 22.1% share).

LicenseeOnline BrandTotal HandleOnline HandleRetail HandleRevenue (GGR)PromosState TaxLocal Tax
MotorCityFanDuel$134,218,482$123,958,756$10,259,726$11,010,213$4,561,608$365,087$248,816
Bay MillsDraftKings$120,411,750$120,411,750?$2,915,213$5,485,779$0$0
MGM Grand DetroitBetMGM$114,696,940$102,184,773$12,512,167$8,870,565$4,153,176$248,297$189,618
GreektownBarstool$51,460,087$40,010,642$11,449,445$1,428,120$556,307$38,897$37,873
Grand TraverseCaesars$36,515,540$36,515,540?$1,044,533$2,443,999$0$0
Lac Vieux DesertPointsBet$17,089,185$17,089,185?$669,282$1,149,528$0$0
Little Traverse BayFox Bet$7,068,956$7,068,956?$259,077$255,549$296$0
Little RiverBetRivers$5,099,382$5,099,382?$214,052$237,748$0$0
HannahvilleTwinSpires$3,138,257$3,138,257?$305,874$198,783$0$0
Sault Ste. MarieWynnBet$2,849,004$2,849,004?$143,019$127,090$0$0
Match-E-Be-Nash-She-WishPlay Gun Lake$1,891,550$1,891,550?-$28,603$127,936$0$0
Nottawaseppi HuronFireKeepers$1,224,372$1,224,372?$42,697$46,506$0$0
Keweenaw BayGolden Nugget$1,193,383$1,193,383?$84,882$34,976$307$0
PokagonFour Winds$708,536$708,536?-$11,635$234,033$0$0
Total$497,565,425$463,344,087$34,221,338$26,947,289$19,613,017$652,884$476,307

Of the rest of the field, TwinSpires Sportsbook was a bit of a standout for its growth. The sportsbook took in $3.1 million in sports wagers, a 100.1% increase from September. The entire statewide market grew 30.8% month-over-month in October, so TwinSpires was well ahead of that growth.

TwinSpires just moved from 10th to ninth place in online sports betting handle though and still took just a 0.7% market share.

$24.3M in sportsbook revenue, nearly $1M in taxes

Michigan’s 14 online sports betting operators took in $24.3 million of October revenue.

Overall, it was a relatively successful month for Michigan sports bettors, as online sportsbooks had a 5.2% hold percentage. That’s the second-lowest month since January’s launch, trailing only February, when sportsbooks held 3.1% of handle.

The overall online hold percentage since launch in Michigan is now 7.5%.

That haul resulted in $552.907 in state tax money generated and $354,113 of taxes paid to the city of Detroit.

Since launch, sports betting operators have paid $4.9 million in state taxes, while Detroit retail casino partners Barstool Sportsbook, BetMGM and FanDuel have paid $2.8 million to Michigan’s largest city.

Photo by Shutterstock Images
Matt Schoch Avatar
Written by
Matt Schoch

A Michigan native, Matt has worked at newspapers in Michigan, Missouri and the Virgin Islands. A versatile sports reporter, Matt has covered sailing on the Great Lakes, cricket in the Caribbean, high school and pro playoffs, and the Olympics in Rio. He's also the former host of the Locked On Pistons Podcast and producer of a documentary on Emoni Bates. A former blackjack dealer, Matt has studied the industry from all sides.

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