Massachusetts sports betting operators overcame a nearly $100 million drop in month-over-month betting action by producing a 10.26% hold in July.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) reported a July handle of $411.8 million, down 19% from June, but with payouts from the Boston Celtics’ championship run mostly in the rearview mirror, revenue of $42.2 million was actually right on par with the previous month.
The win rate jumped two percentage points from June, and taxable revenue of $41.2 million helped the Bay State fill its coffers with $8.2 million.
Relying on MLB and the Olympics to drive betting action, Massachusetts generated an impressive 40% more dollars wagered than in July 2023.
Online sports betting drove much of that as the mobile handle went over $405 million for the month, and 98.8% of the revenue was produced by the seven online sportsbooks.
Retail bounces back
The Bay State’s three brick-and-mortar sportsbooks took the brunt of the Celtics’ race to the title, losing more than $588,000 in taxable revenue on an $8.6 million handle in June.
July was much kinder as retail’s gross revenue reached $538,372 on $6.6 million of action. Encore Boston Harbor hauled in $3.4 million in wagers, but a 3.6% hold produced under $117,000 in taxable revenue. Plainridge Park fared much better, enjoying a 15.5% hold on nearly $2.4 million wagered.
DraftKings wins big
| Operator | July Handle | Gross Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $202.1 million | $20.8 million |
| FanDuel | $119.9 million | $13.1 million |
| BetMGM | $27.5 million | $2.8 million |
| Fanatics | $21 million | $2.3 million |
| ESPN BET | $19.1 million | $1.5 million |
| Caesars | $13.2 million | $964,044 |
| Bally Bet | $2.4 million | $121,299 |
DraftKings continued its dominance in the same state where the online sportsbook is headquartered. DraftKings produced a 10.3% win rate on a $202.1 million handle to lead Massachusetts sports betting in the amount wagered and revenue.
FanDuel finished second with a handle of $119.9 million and enjoyed an online-best 10.97% hold to generate more than $13 million in revenue.
No other sportsbook came close to the two giants in the Bay State. BetMGM’s handle of $27.5 million fell 19% month-over-month but its revenue of $2.8 million was up $400,000 compared to June.
Fanatics and ESPN BET continued their close battles, being separated in handle by less than $2 million, but Fanatics’ 10.9% hold was well ahead of PENN Entertainment online platform’s 8.05%.
Caesars fell short of $1 million in revenue because of a 7% hold. Bally Bet launched on July 2 in Massachusetts and produced just $121,299 in revenue on a $2.4 million handle in its first month.
Still trying
The MGC announced during Thursday's meeting that it expects to host a discussion with bettors and sports betting operators on why limits are placed on winning wagerers this fall. The commission tried to have a roundtable meeting about the topic in May, but none of the sportsbooks operating in the Bay State at the time showed up.
The MGC also decided on Thursday to remove the International Boxing Association from the sports wagering catalog because of the federation's ties to Russia, which the commission does not allow.
