Maryland February Sports Betting Numbers Reflect End of NFL Season

Despite the Super Bowl and an extra day of sporting events in February, Maryland’s sports betting industry experienced a slowdown that was in line with expectations. This led to declines in activity for the top sports betting sites operating in the state.

The February earnings report from the Maryland Gaming and Lottery revealed that both the state’s sports betting apps and retail providers saw a decrease in sports betting handle and revenues compared to the previous month. Despite this, there was an increase in handle and revenue when comparing year-over-year figures.

In February, FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM emerged as the top Maryland sports betting platforms, while ESPN BET fell slightly short in fourth place.

$442.6 million February handle

Sports betting providers in Maryland reported $442.6 million in accepted bets in February, marking an 18.8% decrease from January’s $545 million but a strong 30.4% increase from February 2023’s $339.4 million.

In February, Maryland sports betting saw apps contribute $428.4 million to the handle, with retail accounting for $14.1 million.

Gross revenues down month-over-month but up year-over-year

Maryland’s best sportsbooks had mixed revenue figures in February, with Maryland Gaming and Lottery reporting $43.3 million in gross sports betting revenue.

The figures for February 2024 show a significant decrease of 45.7% from January’s $80 million, but they do reflect an 8% increase compared to February 2023’s $40.2 million.

In February, Maryland sportsbooks saw a hold rate of 9.8%, marking the third-lowest win rate in their 16 months of operation. Despite this, they have achieved a win rate above 10% in 13 of those months. This is a significant drop from the 14.7% win rate reported in January.

After deducting expenses and promotions, adjusted gross revenues totaled $28.1 million. Maryland’s legal sports wagering activity in February generated $4.2 million in tax revenue, thanks to a 15% tax rate.

In the first two months of 2024, adjusted revenue has increased by an impressive 153.6%, resulting in an additional $7.5 million in taxes going to state and local funds compared to the same period last year.

FanDuel tops the Maryland market

In February, residents took advantage of numerous promotions offered by Maryland sportsbooks.

In February, FanDuel emerged as the top Maryland sports betting platform, with a total handle of $191.3 million out of the overall $442.6 million. It achieved $23.4 million in gross winnings with a 12.2% hold.

In February, DraftKings Maryland ranked second in the market, with $137 million in accepted wagers and $13.4 million in gross winnings from a 9.8% hold in the Old Line State.

BetMGM placed third in the competition to become the most popular sports betting app in Maryland, with $37.3 million in bets accepted in February. Despite this, the app only generated $2.7 million in revenue for the month, with a disappointing hold of 7.2%.

In February, ESPN BET Maryland placed fourth in the Maryland market with a $22.2 million handle, marking a 38.2% decrease from the previous month. The $22.2 million represented only a 5.2% market share for ESPN BET, falling short of its goal of 7% in its first year. Despite this, the company still managed to generate over $1.7 million in gross revenue with a 7.9% hold. This performance was below expectations compared to other regions where ESPN BET has exceeded its targets.

Caesars Underscoreg Maryland ranked fifth in total accepted bets last month, bringing in $19.4 million, while Fanatics Underscoreg Maryland placed sixth with $12.8 million in bets reported for February.