Indiana Stops Sportsbook Handle Skid

Without even having a full month of the National Football League season in the books, the state of Indiana saw a great increase in handle for sports betting in the month of August.

Through a statement on Monday from the Indiana Gaming Commission, they listed how the state performed for the month of August in regards to sports gambling activity.

Out of the 13 sportsbooks that call Indiana their home, the total handle for August was upwards of $238 million. For the state of Indiana alone, this generated $2.41 million in taxable sports betting handle.

Sports Betting Boom In August 

In the month of August, the state of Indiana had a total handle of $238 million. This alone was a 14.1% increase when compared to the previous month of July. July’s total handle was $206.6 million for sports betting wagers. The handle was a bit lighter but still positive from a year-over-year view. For the month of August 2021, sportsbook operators in Indiana saw a $215.6 million handle, which is up 9.9% annually. 

For the past four months in Indiana, the sports wagering handle had been trending on the decline when looking at a month-over-month view. This was not much of a surprise to see based on the history of sports betting, not just in Indiana but in all of the United States.

The Summer has the end of the National Basketball Association and no National Football League, meaning the only major betting option is Major League Baseball.

Unfortunately for sports betting operators, while the MLB is popular and a driver for the majority of handle in the Summer, it doesn’t come close to what the NFL brings in.  

Indiana Sportsbook Breakdown

In 2022, sports betting had grown to thirteen operators in the state of Indiana. The top dogs, like in other states across the country, were DraftKings and FanDuel.

In the month of August, DraftKings was able to beat out FanDuel for the top spot in regards to handle. DraftKings had a handle of $71.7 million for the month of August.

Right behind them, the former number one holder of the top handle was FanDuel, with $69.6 in handle. 

In third place was BetMGM, who had a much more significant drop in handle compared to DraftKings and FanDuel, with $28.6 million in handle. To round out the top four, Caesars finished with $19.8 million in total handle.

In regards to the statewide handle in each sport, baseball was the leader for August, with around $77.6 million in handle. This was no surprise as it was the only major professional sport running at the time, and it will take a step back to number two once professional football returns. 

Especially when compared to the handle of the online product, the brick-and-mortar handle is a very minor portion of the total sportsbook handle in the state of Indiana.

For the brick-and-mortar handle, DraftKings listed that they have received just under $1.5 million in handle. FanDuel was even less, with $258,930 in handle for the month of August. The Hard Rock Casino Northern Indians said that their brick-and-mortar handle was only $574,361. 

For a direct example of how different the online sportsbook product is compared to the brick-and-mortar casino, look at Horseshoe Hammond. In the month of August, Horseshoe Hammond made $6.27 million in handle for their online product. In the month of August, for the brick-and-mortar product, Horseshoe Hammond generated $1.25 million in handle. 

In August alone, the state of Indiana taxed the total revenue of all the operators combined of $25.33 million to collect $2.41 million for sportsbook wagers alone for the state.

With the start of the 2022 NFL season, there will continue to be an increase in handle generated not only in Indiana but for every sportsbook in the United States, both online and brick-and-mortar.

Beyond the NFL season, Fall brings the start of the NBA and NHL seasons, not to mention hockey. Needless to say, both types of sportsbooks will be very busy until the end of March.