An operator-friendly Super Bowl LIX outcome in the Prairie State led to a 53.1% year-over-year February revenue increase.
Key takeaways
- Super Bowl month produced Illinois' sixth-highest revenue haul on record.
- Football generated over $11 million in income while parlays, including Super Bowl wagers, accounted for $76 million of the entire month’s profit.
- The state hauled in $45.8 million, running up year-to-date tax revenue to nearly $100 million.
The Illinois Gaming Board recently reported online and retail sportsbooks generated $128.1 million in monthly profits, the state's sixth-highest revenue total ever. It also helped that February’s $1.6 billion handle during the NFL’s premier event also jumped 7.4% from the previous Super Bowl month.
The amount bettors wagered in the latest report increased the billion-dollar handle streak to six consecutive months. Prairie State operators had a nine-month run in 2023-2024.
February’s 11% hold was up more than 3 points year-over-year, the third double-digit win rate over the last four months. Wagering action fell 10% from January’s heavier volume, including the entire NFL playoffs and end of college football. Revenue was down 13% month-over-month, but operators enjoyed a higher win rate in February.
The Land of Lincoln claimed $45.8 million in February for a two-month $98.3 million year-to-date tax revenue total.
Sport-by-sport
NFL football played a massive role in Illinois’ February success. With the Philadelphia Eagles beating the Kansas City Chiefs to win the Super Bowl, sportsbooks produced a 20% hold on a $55.4 million handle, leading to $11.4 million in revenue.
Counting the entire completed handle, football generated a $66.8 million haul and a win rate over 17%. Parlay action, which the Big Game heavily affected, drew $337.7 million in wagers and $76.1 million of the total Illinois sports betting revenue.
Between the NBA and college, basketball led all sports with a $444.1 million handle, but a 4.4% hold only produced $19.5 million for operators. Tennis was third with a $91.5 million handle, leading to a $5.8 million profit.
Big boys thrive
| Online Operator | February Handle | Revenue |
| DraftKings | $420.3 million | $41.7 million |
| FanDuel | $357.3 million | $41.2 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $109.5 million | $14.5 million |
| BetMGM | $62.8 million | $5.7 million |
| BetRivers | $61.2 million | $6 million |
| Caesars | $49.5 million | $3.3 million |
Online sports betting accounted for $1.12 billion of the Prairie State’s total handle and all but $2.5 million of gross revenue.
DraftKings led all mobile operators with a $420.3 million handle, followed by FanDuel’s $357.3 million. However, FanDuel produced a 13.8% hold, compared to DK's 9.9% win rate, to record just $500,000 less revenue than FanDuel’s rival.
Fanatics Sportsbook produced its best income total yet, hauling in $14.5 million from a $109.5 million handle, third-highest among all online sportsbooks. BetMGM was fourth with a $62.8 million handle, narrowly surpassing BetRivers, which made more profit with $6 million.
Caesars came closest among all other operators to reach $50 million in wagers but came up just short. ESPN BET enjoyed a 10% hold on a $38 million handle. Hard Rock Bet won back 6.1% on its $22.8 million handle while Circa Sports reported a February revenue loss of over $134,000.
Other Illinois news
More competition is on the way as bet365 launched in March and will be included in the next monthly report.
Illinois lawmakers are considering legalizing iGaming to help a rising budget deficit and economic concerns. Supporters introduced House Bill 3080 in February, but legislation saw little movement so far this session, which runs through May.
Meanwhile, the IGB sent cease-and-desist letters this month to three prediction market platforms: Kalshi, Robinhood, and Crypto.com. Land of Lincoln regulators said those companies are unlicensed and operating their sports-event outcome markets illegally.
