Illinois Sportsbook raised nearly $92 million in total sports betting revenue adjusted in April 2024, according to data released on Thursday by the Illinois Gaming Commission. This month, the state's betting processing exceeded $1 billion for the eighth consecutive time.
The operator's revenue in April this year was $1.1 billion, up 2.7% from April 2023, despite a significant 22.8% increase in the handle. Last year's holding was just under 10% compared to the 8.3% return this year. The handle was down 12.7% from $1.26 billion in March, while revenue was down 7.5%.
Illinois is the fourth state to top $35 billion in handling since the start of the post-PASPA era, after New Jersey, New York and Nevada, according to SportsHandle. April was the 13th state to top $1 billion in monthly pay in Prairie, the third after New York (26) and New Jersey (19).
With only Kentucky and Arizona yet to release April numbers, Illinois is poised to overtake New Jersey for the first time this year to become No. 2 in the country.
Tax rate change to be planned
In the month of April, Illinois' tax collection totaled $13.8 million, or $61.5 million compared to the previous year, $8.9 million ahead of last year's pace. However, there will be changes in tax policy this year. The current 15 percent rate will only apply until June. Starting July 1, Illinois will implement a progressive tax system that starts at 20 percent and caps businesses that generate more than $200 million in annual revenue at 40 percent.
Using 2024 mobile operator revenue data to illustrate the effectiveness of progressive tax rates, FanDuel and DraftKings account for more than 90% of the state's nearly $49 million additional tax revenue.
Both operators quickly entered the 35% tax rate range, mainly due to Farrellay income. FanDuel's Farrellay income alone rose to $133.1 million, rising to the 35% range, while DraftKings was in the 30% range at $86.0 million.
Given Illinois bettors' strong preference for Farrellay, which reached $374.4 million in April, both VanDuel and DraftKings are likely to trigger up to 40% tax rates relatively soon.
The increase could come sooner than expected, especially as betting volumes are expected to increase in August with the start of Week 0 of the NFL preseason and college football season.
Another notable feature is that BetRiver is benefiting from amendments that separate revenue from sports betting apps and real places for tax purposes. Rivers Casino, which owns the BetRiver license, has earned $3.5 million from Deathplanes, approaching the 25% tax rate threshold of $30 million.
Based on the revenue figures for the first four months, Rivers would likely reach at least the 30% bracket if both revenue sources were combined, as it remains the top brick-and-mortar sportsbook in the state.
Other entities, such as Hollywood Casino in Aurora (license-holder for ESPN BET) and Par-A-Dice Casino (tied to BetMGM), would similarly likely ascend to higher tax brackets over a fiscal year.
Despite projections indicating an increase of $147 million in tax revenue — falling short of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s initial $200 million target set in February when proposing a tax hike to 35% — FanDuel and DraftKings are expected to generate enough revenue at the highest tiers to approach, if not surpass, the governor’s target. Year-to-date, the total handle has increased by 20.6% compared to 2023, with revenue up by 16.8%, reaching $410.1 million.
FanDuel Still In The Lead
In 2023, Illinois narrowly exceeded $1 billion in adjusted revenue, with its top two operators currently outperforming last year’s figures. DraftKings’ revenue has surged by 43.2% compared to the first four months of last year, while FanDuel’s winnings have seen an 11.1% rise.
FanDuel led the state’s eight sports betting apps in April revenue, recording $43.8 million with an 11.3% hold from $386.9 million in handle. Notably, nearly 80% of this revenue — $34.2 million — came from parlays, achieving an impressive 25.4% hold on $134.8 million in such wagers.
DraftKings topped in handle with $400.3 million, collecting $27.9 million in winnings with close to a 7% hold. Parlays contributed almost two-thirds of this total at $17.7 million, reflecting an 18.1% win rate.
BetRivers secured the third spot in both revenue and handle, achieving a 7.6% hold, with $5.4 million from $71.5 million.
ESPN BET, BetMGM, and Fanatics Sportsbook followed closely, with ESPN BET leading at $3.7 million in revenue with a 7% hold rate. BetMGM posted nearly $3.7 million, edging out ESPN BET in handle with $55.1 million to ESPN BET’s $53.1 million.
Caesars reported $2.2 million with a 4.6% hold on $47.8 million in wagers, while Circa Sports narrowly gained $22,842 on $17.2 million in handle, resulting in a 0.1% hold.
Losses on Boxing, Great Revenue on Basketball and Baseball
Parlays generated $62.2 million in revenue for Illinois sportsbooks in April with an overall 20.3% hold. However, they faced losses in boxing and MMA, paying out nearly $4.9 million over $12.2 million in accepted bets.
Ryan Garcia’s upset of Devin Haney in a super lightweight boxing bout on April 20 resulted in significant losses for both FanDuel and DraftKings, with FanDuel losing $2.6 million and DraftKings nearly $1.9 million.
Basketball, the second-largest revenue source, brought in $13.7 million, though this was offset by a $768,800 loss at Argosy Casino Alton. The hold on basketball wagers was 4.3% against $319 million in handle. 슬롯사이트
Baseball, in its first full month, generated $6.5 million in winnings with a 3.2% hold from $204.5 million in bets. Tennis rounded out the top four sports for revenue, contributing $5.2 million with a 6.9% win rate from $80.3 million in handle.
No other sport reached $2 million in revenue, although hockey and soccer came close, falling short by $24,300 and $61,600 respectively.
