Ohio Sports Betting Handle for May was $446M, FanDuel and DraftKings Dominate

Article ByDavid Weir

July 3, 2023

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Posted in: Ohio Gambling News, US Gambling News, US Sports Betting News

Ohio’s sports betting industry has continued its slight dip in revenues after a very promising start to the legal market in January 2023.

The total handle for May was $446 million, according to the latest figures from the Ohio Casino Control Commission. That’s a 25.4% decrease from the $520.6 million reported in April.

This marks the second consecutive month of decline for the Buckeye State, which had previously seen a promising start to the year. The summer marks a traditionally quieter time for American sports betting, as it is the off-season of most major sports leagues.

At the top end of the market, Ohio bettors continued to massively prefer FanDuel and DraftKings. The two giant operators were well ahead of the rest of the pack, with $158 million and $137 million handles in May, respectively. However, both operators remained down on April’s figures.

In distant third place was British operator Bet365, taking just shy of $32.1 million in bets for the month.

Rounding out the bottom of the list, Ohio native Jake Paul-backed micro betting app Betr came second to last in handle, despite receiving a $35 million funding round last week.  

Rises and Falls

The sports betting industry in Ohio kicked off with a bang in January, reporting a handle of $1.1 billion and generating $209.2 million in revenue.

The following months saw continued growth, with February and March reporting handles of $638.8 million and $737.2 million, respectively.

However, the industry has struggled to maintain this momentum, with April’s figures, and now May, showing the first slowdown in revenues.

Since the market only launched in January, there’s no year-on-year data to compare yet.

Ohio currently hosts 18 legal sports betting operators, including industry giants like bet365, DraftKings, FanDuel, PointsBet, BetRivers, Caesars Sportsbook, and BetMGM.

The operators collectively held on to $55.95 million of the $430 million handle, for an approximately 12.99% hold.

That’s about a 0.7% better hold than in April. In new markets sportsbooks are expected to improve monthly holds as it matures, because they offer out valuable sports betting promos to bring customers in at launch.

FanDuel and DraftKings continued to outspend the competition in terms of promotions and bonuses in May, with $6.76 million and $6.5 million spent, respectively. Bet365, who overtook BetMGM Sportsbook for third place this month, spent $3.7 million on promos.

Related: FanDuel Sportsbook reviewed and rated by our experts

Looking Ahead

Despite the recent decline in Ohio’s sports betting industry, as it only launched this year, it is difficult to compare without more data.

The state’s sportsbooks, mobile betting apps, and gaming kiosks have collectively taken in just under $3.5 billion in bets in that time. That has generated about $508 million in revenue, and approximately $51 million in taxes for the state.

New market entrant Fanatics bucked the trend of decline for most operators in Ohio in May, posting a 141% increase over April’s revenues to $1.039 million.

In future years, Ohio could go down the route of states like Arkansas and legalize a whole selection of more niche and unusual sports in order to bolster sports betting options during the off-season.