As expected, thanks to March Madness, Ohio saw a substantial 19% increase in online sports betting handle in March. But the college basketball bump didn’t translate to higher revenue. In fact, Ohio sportsbooks saw a 6.4% decrease in revenue over February’s numbers.
According to the recent monthly revenue report from the Ohio Casino Control Commission, online sportsbook operators handled $784.78 million in bets in March. That’s around $69.4 million more in bets than Ohio sportsbooks took in March of 2023, a 9.7% year-over-year increase. Last month, Ohio online sportsbooks saw just a 5.9% increase in monthly handle compared to February 2023.
Ohio sportsbooks see handle rebound, revenue dip in March
Ohio sports betting apps paid out $717.18 million in winnings for the month, with their hold rate dropping to 8.6%, down from 10.1% in February. That lower hold percentage led to just $62.13 million in March revenue, compared to $66.41 in revenue for February.
The 6.4% month-over-month revenue dip comes even with sportsbooks decreasing promotional spending by 20.3% compared to February. But even without those extra promo offers and bonuses, Ohio sports bettors managed to come out as winners this month.
Despite the year-over-year handle increase, Ohio online sportsbook revenue dropped 32.7% versus March 2023 revenue. The sportsbooks’ hold percentage in March of last year was 13.4%.
FanDuel remains on top in Ohio sports betting handle & revenue
As it has in nine of the first 15 months of legal sports betting in Ohio, FanDuel once again led Ohio online sportsbooks in terms of handle and revenue in March. FanDuel took $265.8 million in bets during the month — a 19.6% increase over its February sportsbook handle. But FanDuel’s revenue fell to just a little over $27 million, compared to its $28 million revenue in February.
Part of what cut into FanDuel’s final revenue numbers was a steady promotional spend. While several sportsbooks decreased their promotional spending from February (with higher-amount offers centered around the Super Bowl), FanDuel spent $7.5 million on promotions in March, just a 5.6% decrease over February. In comparison, DraftKings’ promotional spending from February to March decreased by 36.1%, and bet365 spent 30.1% less than in February.
In the two-sportsbook battle for the top sports betting spot in Ohio, FanDuel expanded its lead over DraftKings in March. DraftKings took $260.6 million in bets in March, a 17.3% increase over February’s numbers. DraftKings’ March revenue was $20.3 million, a 19% drop from February. In February, FanDuel’s revenue was $3.9 million more than DraftKings’, even though FanDuel only took just over $200k more in bets than DraftKings. In March, FanDuel had $5.2 million more in handle than DraftKings and $6.7 million more in revenue. Find a month-over-month revenue comparison of the two sportsbook apps below.
| Month | FanDuel Handle | DraftKings Handle | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2023 | $494.2 million | $344 million | FanDuel |
| February 2023 | $232.8 million | $214 million | FanDuel |
| March 2023 | $258.5 million | $228.4 million | FanDuel |
| April 2023 | $184.6 million | $161.3 million | FanDuel |
| May 2023 | $158.5 million | $137 million | FanDuel |
| June 2023 | $120.3 million | $117.5 million | FanDuel |
| July 2023 | $106.7 million | $116.2 million | DraftKings |
| August 2023 | $115.8 million | $133. 8 million | DraftKings |
| September 2023 | $207.8 million | $261.3 million | DraftKings |
| October 2023 | $258.6 million | $258.7 million | DraftKings |
| November 2023 | $293.3 million | $275.8 million | FanDuel |
| December 2023 | $289 million | $261.3 million | FanDuel |
| January 2024 | $282.7 million | $254.2 million | FanDuel |
| February 2024 | $222.2 million | $222 million | FanDuel |
| March 2024 | $265.86 million | $260.63 million | FanDuel |
Bet365 maintains third place, logs highest Ohio handle ever
Though still a ways off from challenging the numbers put up by DraftKings and FanDuel in Ohio, bet365 jockeyed with BetMGM for much of last year for third place in handle and revenue. Late last year, ESPN Bet entered the Ohio sports betting market and overtook both of them. In January, ESPN Bet had the third-highest handle in Ohio, but bet365 surged to post $1.6 million more than ESPN Bet in revenue, the third-best revenue numbers in the state.
In February, bet365 overtook ESPN Bet and BetMGM in both handle and revenue, a trend that continued in March. Bet365’s $57,251,630 in handle was the sportsbook’s highest number yet in Ohio. The U.K.-based sportsbook’s $4.5 revenue bested fourth-place ESPN Bet’s March revenue numbers by more than $1.2 million.
Ohioans appear to really like bet365 for March Madness betting. The sportsbook’s previous high mark for handle came in March of last year, when it took in $54.4 million in bets. Last March was bet365’s best month for revenue by far, when it took in just over $12 million in revenue.
BetMGM, ESPN Bet volley for fourth & fifth
With a total of 19 online sportsbooks currently available in Ohio, there are plenty of commendable March performances from runner-ups as well.
ESPN Bet
- ESPN Bet fell a little further behind the pack among the mid-tier sportsbooks. Last month, the sportsbook trailed fourth-place BetMGM by $1.6 million in handle. For March, BetMGM took $9.6 million more in bets than ESPN Bet. Still, similar to last month, ESPN Bet had $126k more in revenue than BetMGM in March.
Prime Sports
- Prime Sports, which launched last fall in Ohio and caters to sharp bettors, has yet to post positive revenue numbers this year. Though it continues to have higher handle numbers than it did last year ($6.5 million in March), Prime Sports had -$105k revenue for the month.
Hard Rock Bet
- Hard Rock Bet posted negative Ohio revenue for the first time ever in March. Although it took $12.4 million in bets, Hard Rock Bet paid $12.2 million in winnings, spent $421k on promotions and voided $287k wagers, leading to -$6,952 in revenue on the month.
Ohio retail sportsbooks rebound from dismal February
Retail sportsbooks in the Buckeye State rebounded nicely after posting negative revenue numbers in February for the first time since sports betting’s January 2023 launch.
Ohio’s retail sportsbooks took $23.4 million in bets in March, the highest retail sportsbook handle numbers yet. According to the March revenue report, retail sportsbooks collected $1.6 million in revenue — up from -122k in February.
This record-high retail sportsbook handle was thanks to the Caesars Sportsbook at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. That sportsbook alone took $6 million in bets in March — the highest handle for a single retail sportsbook location in Ohio ever. Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse is home to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are celebrating a successful season and a recent NBA Playoff berth.
The April revenue report could reveal another stellar month for this Caesars retail location. Along with hosting Cavs playoff games, Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse also hosted the NCAA women’s college basketball Final Four and national championship game in early April.
