It seemed obvious Iowa sports betting and many others could set handle records in October given the favorable sports calendar.
Seeing that growth continue into November was not expected but that is exactly what happened. Handle hit $287.2 million, up 2.3% from the previous record of $280.9 million set in October.
Sports betting revenue also hit a new record of $19.7 million. That is more than triple the $6.6 million reported in October.
Why Iowa sports betting growth is important
Topping October handle is significant be ause October contained five full Friday through Sunday weekends. November had just four, meaning one less full day of NFL betting and college football betting.
The growth is not just at Iowa sportsbooks, though. Indiana sportsbooks also saw handle hit a new record last month.
It is still early in the month for state reports, though. Whatever New Jersey sportsbooks report on Thursday should be a better measure of the US sports betting market in November.
Sportsbooks smash last November’s numbers
Sports betting in Iowa continues to be a prime case study on how in-person registration requirements depress the growth of new markets.. The state did not allow remote registration until January 2021 and has seen significant growth since joining more progressive states.
This November’s handle was 229.5% higher than the $87.2 million reported last November. Revenue was 142.5% higher.
Iowa’s operators paid $2.1 million in taxes last month. That represents 17.3% of all tax dollars paid since the market launched in August 2019.
Top four operators control most of the market
More than 90% of all bets were placed online, with Caesars Sportsbook accounting for 39.9% of online handle.
That is 11.1 percentage points higher than DraftKings Sportsbook‘s 28.8% online handle share. It’s important to remember, though, that in-person registration helped shape the market and Caesars (which launched as William Hill) has six retail partners in the state.
| Brand | Handle | Revenue | Hold | Handle Share | Revenue Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caesars | $103,968,884 | $4,692,352 | 4.5% | 39.9% | 27.9% |
| DraftKings | $75,082,914 | $4,002,162 | 5.3% | 28.8% | 23.8% |
| FanDuel | $32,685,505 | $4,234,377 | 13.0% | 12.6% | 25.2% |
| BetMGM | $19,500,185 | $1,749,718 | 9.0% | 7.5% | 10.4% |
| Barstool | $9,974,443 | $770,576 | 7.7% | 3.8% | 4.6% |
| PointsBet | $5,952,401 | $372,052 | 6.3% | 2.3% | 2.2% |
| BetRivers | $3,969,171 | $195,309 | 4.9% | 1.5% | 1.2% |
| Elite | $3,209,022 | $212,029 | 6.6% | 1.2% | 1.3% |
| theScore Bet | $1,691,048 | $186,083 | 11.0% | 0.6% | 1.1% |
| Circa | $1,105,012 | $38,758 | 3.5% | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Betfred | $757,332 | $172,502 | 22.8% | 0.3% | 1.0% |
| Hard Rock | $729,955 | $83,624 | 11.5% | 0.3% | 0.5% |
| Unibet | $580,084 | $27,857 | 4.8% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Bally Bet | $418,241 | $2,827 | 0.7% | 0.2% | 0.0% |
| Fubo | $347,672 | $19,805 | 5.7% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Q | $287,799 | $16,310 | 5.7% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Betway | $108,607 | $20,745 | 19.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| Total | $260,368,272 | $16,797,086 | 6.5% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
FanDuel Sportsbook is a distant third in terms of handle but is pretty even with the two market leaders in terms of revenue.
Add in BetMGM and it is clear the other 13 sportsbooks are fighting for scraps left by the top four. Those four operators account for 88.8% of online handle and 87.3% of online revenue.
