For the second consecutive month, Michigan sports betting had record handle.
In fact, the online sports betting handle in November of $568.8 million was enough to clear that hurdle on its own. That’s an 18.5% increase from the online handle of November 2022 ($480 million).
Combined with the retail handle, Michigan recorded $584.1 million in wagers for November, a new record by $34 million from October.
November 2023 Michigan sports betting revenue numbers
Here are the top-line numbers for Michigan sports betting in November from the Michigan Gaming Control Board.
- Handle: $584.1 million ($568.8 million online)
- Revenue: $37 million ($33.9 million online)
- Hold: 6.3% (down from 8.4% last month)
- Month-over-month: Handle increased 6%
- November sports betting taxes: $856,825 to the state and $323,590 to local entities.
- Top online sports betting app by handle: FanDuel Sportsbook MI with $213 million
- Top online sports betting app by revenue: DraftKings Sportsbook MI with $10.6 million
Three takeaways from November Michigan sports betting revenue report
Sports betting continues second wind in Michigan
As we thought sports betting had plateaued in the state, it seems to be finding new wind to end 2023.
Online handle has set new records each of the last two months, doing so by more than $30 million each time from the previous best.
After being behind 2022’s online handle pace throughout most of the year, the online handle for 2023 is now less than 1% behind 2022’s handle through 11 months. The difference is just $25.4 million currently.
Should Michigan hit just over $500 million in online wagers in December, it will pass the 2022 yearly total.
Big month for the bettors
A big reason for the lower handle but increased revenue was a great hold throughout 2023.
That was definitely not the case in November.
The online hold was just under 6%. That drops the online hold for the year to 8.9%.
Despite the record handle of $568.8 million, the revenue from those wagers was just $33.9 million. Last year, the online revenue from September-December never dipped below $40 million.
FanDuel, which blasted past any previous handle record with $213 million in wagers, actually finished second in the OSB revenue race this month with just $9.7 million. That’s just a 4.6% hold. A far cry from the 13.2% it sat at throughout the first 10 months of the year.
Interestingly enough, retail sports betting had a 20.3% hold with $3.1 million in revenue over $15.3 million in wagers.
ESPN BET opens strong
On Nov. 14, ESPN BET officially launched in Michigan. It replaced Barstool Sportsbook as the online book for Hollywood Casino at Greektown.
Despite only being live for half the month, the overall numbers for Greektown look strong.
Between Barstool and ESPN BET, the two collected $49.9 million in online wagers for November. That was the highest handle since January of 2022, which was Barstool’s all-time record.
Of those wagers, $6.1 million in revenue was recorded. That was an all-time record for Greektown’s online brand.
Despite that, it still reported -$10.1 million in adjusted gross revenue, which indicates a high factor of promotional losses. That is understandable for a big launch like ESPN BET’s was.
Michigan sports betting November 2023 revenue by operator
| Licensee | Online Brand | Handle | Revenue | Hold | Taxes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MotorCity | FanDuel | $221,094,581 | $11,948,318 | 5.4% | $452,715 |
| Bay Mills | DraftKings | $151,850,493 | $10,592,580 | 7.0% | $394,382 |
| MGM Grand Detroit | BetMGM | $80,111,958 | $4,737,627 | 5.9% | $214,514 |
| Greektown | Barstool/ESPN | $54,838,194 | $6,747,797 | 12.3% | $55,233 |
| Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa | Caesars | $37,313,507 | $1,956,233 | 5.2% | $41,289 |
| Little River Band of Ottawa | BetRivers | $15,319,627 | -$237,140 | -1.5% | $0 |
| Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa | PointsBet | $9,993,632 | $571,955 | 5.7% | $0 |
| Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa | WynnBet | $3,380,924 | $192,049 | 5.7% | $16,132 |
| Sagniaw Chippewa | Eagle | $3,370,159 | $195,483 | 5.8% | $5,864 |
| Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi | FireKeepers | $2,005,289 | $31,909 | 1.6% | $0 |
| Pokagon Band of Potawatomi | Four Winds | $1,420,918 | $89,465 | 6.3% | $0 |
| Hannahville | SI | $1,321,249 | $78,901 | 6.0% | $0 |
| Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi | Play Gun Lake | $1,079,232 | $78,778 | 7.3% | $0 |
| Keweenaw Bay | Golden Nugget | $1,042,681 | $59,310 | 5.7% | $286 |
| Total | $584,142,443 | $37,043,266 | 6.3% | $1,180,415 |
