A sharp rise in handle led to the Nutmeg State’s fifth-highest total since legal sports betting arrived in October 2021.
Online sports betting sites and retail wagers combined hit $160 million, up 17.6% from February, according to figures from the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection. That handle also represented a 14% year-over-year increase.
Connecticut sportsbooks also saw gross gaming revenue jump from a paltry $8.55 million in the previous month to a 2023 high of $16.5 million in March.
Sports bettors took a step back as the sportsbooks’ 10.3% hold dwarfed February’s 6.2%. It proved to be a much better month for the state's general fund as operators shelled out $1.85 million in taxes, which was up 58% month-over-month.
Market share
Mobile sports betting operators FanDuel, DraftKings, and SugarHouse enjoyed the robust March Madness market to bounce back from a lackluster February for Connecticut sports betting.
DraftKings led the way with a $68.5 million handle in March, which was $11 million more than the previous month. FanDuel followed closely behind after it took in $65.7 million in sports wagers and outpaced its rival in revenue by claiming $7.4 million in winnings compared to DraftKings’ $6.8 million.
FanDuel’s win rate of 11.3% was also the best among the three mobile sportsbooks while DraftKings reached a 9.9% hold.
SugarHouse, which is wrapping up operations in Connecticut soon, brought in a handle of $15.7 million to produce a revenue of nearly $1.3 million for an 8% win rate.
March marked the end of the Connecticut Lottery Corporation’s partnership with Rush Interactive, which runs SugarHouse, but the sportsbook will continue to operate until a replacement is found. CLC announced last week is beginning the process of receiving proposals for a new sports betting and daily fantasy sports operator.
Connecticut received $9.7 million in sports wagers from retail with a revenue of $1 million.
