Kentucky Operators Roll Over Bettors with 13.5% Hold in September

Kentucky sports betting operators hammered bettors in the first full month of football, a reoccurring theme across the U.S.

The return of the NFL and college football spurred a massive 69% month-over-month surge in wagering, and sportsbooks collected $34.3 million in September gross revenue, thanks to 13.4% hold. 

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission reported a monthly handle of $255.9 million, up from the $45.6 million wagered last September during a shortened, tiered-launch month.

September’s revenue was the third-highest all-time for online and retail sportsbooks in the Bluegrass State and second-highest year-to-date behind January. Profits jumped a whopping 182% from the $12.1 million in August, while the adjusted revenue reached $33.6 million.  

Kentucky sports betting has generated $2.6 billion in wagers and more than $317 million in revenue since September 2023. 

Filling the coffers

With Year 1 of sports betting in the books for the Bluegrass State, the second go-round got off to a stellar start. Kentucky hauled in $4.7 million in tax revenue during September, running the year-to-date tally to more than $28.3 million. 

The state has filled its coffers with nearly $44 million since last September when retail launched the first week of the month. Online went live late in the month, so this was the first fully operational September.            

DraftKings closes in on $1 billion

Kentucky’s eight online sports betting operators accounted for $246.6 million of the overall handle in September. 

DraftKings made up 40% of the mobile wagering with $100.1 million accepted and is on the verge of becoming the first mobile operator to surpass $1 billion in handle, which it’ll do next month. The online sportsbook also led the Bluegrass State with $13.5 million in gross revenue, up from the $5 million in profits achieved in August.

The gap between DraftKings and rival FanDuel grew in September compared to August, as the latter generated $82.2 million for the month. However, a better hold of 15.6% led to $12.8 million in revenue. 

bet365 continued its hold on the third spot with a $22.6 million handle, up from $16.3 million in the previous month. BetMGM generated $12.6 million in wagers while Caesars finished fifth at $11.2 million. Both operators produced double-digit holds to go over $1 million in revenue. 

Fanatics Sportsbook beat ESPN BET for the sixth-highest handle by $3 million, but ESPN BET’s 12.5% hold left it just $16,000 behind Fanatics in revenue. Circa Sports generated $1.5 million in wagers and was the only operator with a sub-3% hold.        

Retail doubles up

The eight retail Kentucky sports betting options combined for a $9.3 million handle, more than double the amount wagered in August. Churchill Downs led all brick-and-mortar operators with a $3.8 million handle. 

Red Mile and Turfway Park were the only other two retail sportsbooks to reach $1 million wagered, and Turfway Park and Churchill Downs were the only two with six-figure revenue hauls.

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