Maryland sports betting has been busier than it has ever been in November, as the Maryland Lottery and Gaming reported a monthly handle of $550.7 million, which proved to be 10% higher than the state’s previous record set in December 2022.
Maryland’s sportsbooks were buzzing in November as bettors were eager to fatten their wallets in time for Christmas. Sports bettors were ramping up to a spectacular month, as October generated the second-highest handle since the Old Line State launched mobile sports betting on November 23, 2022. An impressive $483.1 million was wagered in October, but it fell short of December 2022’s record handle of $497.1 million.
However, that was just a foreshadowing of the blizzard of bets that was to come, as the online sportsbooks accepted over $550 million in wagers in November, which has now set the bar for sports betting in Maryland. It was a 14% increase over October and nearly 10% higher than the previous record.
Unfortunately for the sportsbooks, the prodigious handle did not translate into stunning revenues as the hold, or win rate, fell to 7.6%, which was a 4.5% decrease from the previous month.
Gross revenues reported were a disproportionate $41.6 million due to the rather meager 7.6% hold, but compounding a revenue reduction was the $28.6 million in promotional credits and bonuses that carved into profits, reflecting a $21.3 million adjusted gross revenue (AGR), which was a 45% decrease from October’s AGR. Online betting contributed to over 98.6% of the wagering, leaving the retail market with a pittance by comparison.
The mechanics that wrought the biggest handle in Maryland’s brief sports betting history was a confluence of events – sporting events to be more specific – with all the major professional and college sports in action at the same time. The 12 mobile and 13 retail sportsbooks available, allowed anyone who wanted to make a bet to find easy access to do so.
Although FanDuel paced the pack by setting a state handle record of $241.7 million, and DraftKings trailing with $165.8 million in November –accounting for $407.5 million of November’s $550.7 million in total handle–, ESPN BET entered the market on November 14th and posted solid numbers for a mid-month entry with $33.3 million.
However, in order to generate interest in the newest online platform with a worldwide brand name, ESPN BET doled out over $13 million in bonuses and promotional credits to stimulate activity and interest in their platform. That produced a fourth-place finish behind FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM.
The brick-and-mortar locations were led by the MGM National Harbor, which generated $5.7 million in handle but saw its hold decrease from 16% in October to 7.5% in November. Live! Casino trailed in second place, with a $4.1 million handle, while no other retail sportsbook posted a handle of more than $2 million for the month.
The Maryland tax coffers collected $3.2 million in taxes for November and have now levied over $46 million in 2023, whose funds are directed to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Fund.