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Indiana Sees Month-Over-Month Increases in Sports Betting Handle and Revenues in August

Perry Sandra

Updated as of September 13, 2023 at 11:35 AM EDT. Read time: 2 minutes and 4 seconds. For more information, check out our Twitter and Google News links.

Fans celebrate the 79-74 Indiana Hoosiers victory over the top-ranked Purdue Boilermakers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall as we look at our Indiana August report.
Fans celebrate the 79-74 Indiana Hoosiers victory over the top-ranked Purdue Boilermakers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images/AFP.

According to the August report from the Indiana Gaming Commission, the typical summer decrease in Indiana sports betting activity and on the state’s betting sites concluded ahead of schedule.

Instead of August being a slow period for sports betting and the top sportsbooks in Indiana, the state actually saw a rise in both handle and revenues, aligning with a growing national trend.

The decrease in hold rate for Indiana sports betting apps and retail providers negatively impacted overall profits in the Indiana scene. However, the increase from July to August is a positive sign for an industry that is expected to see a boost in profits with the start of the NFL season in September.

Sports betting activity up 16.8%

In August, Indiana regulators announced a handle of $238.1 million, showing a 16.8% increase from July’s $203.8 million. Sports betting activity in August 2023 was almost identical to August 2022, with $237.99 million in bets placed through Indiana’s top sports betting apps.

Indiana’s sportsbooks have seen $2.5 billion in bets in 2023, which is a decrease of 9.7% compared to the first eight months of 2022.

Indiana sports betting apps accounted for almost $229.6 million of the total $238.1 million handle in August.

Even with the addition of August’s totals, Indiana was only $11 million away from reaching a lifetime $13 billion handle, a milestone that is likely already surpassed.

Underwhelming hold rate hinders revenue

Indiana saw a significant increase in sports betting activity in August, but revenue growth did not match the spike.

Adjusted gross gaming revenues for August totaled $23.5 million, showing a slight increase of less than 1% from July’s $23.4 million. Despite this, the revenues for August 2023 were 7.5% lower than those reported in August 2022, when Hoosier State sportsbooks brought in nearly $26 million.

Incorporating August’s numbers, the total revenues for Indiana’s top sportsbooks surpassed $1.1 billion.

In August, Indiana sportsbooks reported a hold rate of 9.9%, which was lower than the 11.5% rate in July and a full percentage point less than the win rate from August 2022.

In August, Hoosier State operators contributed a total of $2.2 million in taxes to state and local coffers. So far this year, tax contributions have reached $22.6 million, showing a $3 million increase compared to the same period in 2022.

DraftKings tops handle battle, FanDuel produces most profits in August

For the third consecutive month, DraftKings Indiana maintained its status as the most popular sportsbook in the Hoosier State. In August, DraftKings reported $94 million in bets and generated $7.6 million in revenue with an 8.1% hold.

In August, FanDuel Indiana recorded $70.8 million in bets, however, the top spot for revenue was claimed by the book with $8.5 million in profits due to a 13.1% hold. BetMGM Indiana placed third with $20 million in bets, followed by Caesars Indiana with $16.9 million in wagers.

September will bring a surge in Indiana sports betting due to the NFL season, but it is unlikely that the state will surpass its record $500,138,648 handle reported in January 2022.

The growing popularity of sports betting in Ohio and Illinois is negatively impacting Indiana’s legal sports betting industry, a trend that is expected to persist in the coming years.

Written By:
Perry Sandra
Perry Sandra and betting go hand-in-hand. Both are characterized by “odds”. Dave fancies himself as one of the most dedicated sports and pop-culture junkies around, to the chagrin of his family and friends. Following sports for 50 years and writing about it for 20, Dave hasn’t found a sport yet that can’t contribute to 2-3 straight hours of couch time. That search remains ongoing. As a good old Canadian boy, hockey is in Dave’s heart, as is curling sadly. But evolution is a real thing and that’s why football, baseball, and just about every sport on the planet has become a passion. Dave isn’t afraid to kill some time obsessing over politics or the far-too-frequent awards shows the consume the airwaves.