Indiana Strong August Sports Betting Results, Total Handle Up 10.8% From July

By Jacob Wayne | Sep 16, 2021, 11:19am

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Indiana became the 13th US state to legalize sports betting and launched its sports wagering market in advance of the 2019 NFL season. Indiana now has an overall sports betting handle of over $4 million. New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Illinois – only four states have a larger sports betting handle overall. Sports betting in Indiana has represented over $33 million in taxes since its 2019 inception.

The Indiana Gaming Commission reported that August’s total sports betting handle was $215.6 million, up about 10.8% from the approximately $194.5 million in July. That was a nice recovery for the state as July represented a 21% drop in total handle from June. With the fall season now here, the sports betting handle in Indiana should continue to grow, with NFL and college football now on the weekly menu for sports bettors.

Indiana Sports Betting Revenue and Taxes

Despite the total sports betting handle increase in August, the adjusted gross sports wagering revenue was $16.5 million, down 5.2% from July’s $17.4 million in adjusted sports wagering revenue. In August, the unofficial win percentage for Indiana sportsbooks was 7.7%, down a bit from Indiana’s overall hold of 8.2%. In August, the tax collected from sportsbooks was $1.57 million, also down slightly from July’s $1.66 million.

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Casinos Falter as Mobile Sportsbooks Succeed

Mobile sports betting is clearly the preferred method for bettors in Indiana, as just over 92% of sports bets were placed on a mobile device. The total online handle for the month was $199.8 million, up 11.6% from July’s $179 million. There are now 13 mobile sportsbooks live in Indiana, while FOX Bet and SBK Sportsbook are expected to be added shortly. While the overall sports betting handle was up in August, casinos struggled to keep pace. The total casino adjusted gross revenue was $190.4 million, down 10.3% from July’s $212.2 million.

Most Popular Sports for Wagers

In August, baseball was the most popular sport for betting, with over $68 million in wagers. Football trailed significantly behind as the second-most popular sport for betting, with $13.9 million in bets, up from $2.2 million in July. It speaks to the popularity of football that it accounted for the second-largest handle of any sport despite the season not starting until September. With the NFL and college football now underway, we should expect football to quickly surpass baseball as the most popular sport to bet on. Parlay bets accounted for just over $82 million of the overall handle.

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Most Popular Mobile Platforms

DraftKings Sportsbook, partnered with Ameristar Casino, was the top online sports betting platform in August with $72.4 million in bets and $4.4 million in gross receipts. FanDuel Sportsbook, partnered with Boyd Gaming and its Blue Chip Casino, came in second with $52.6 million in bets and $4.9 million in gross receipts. BetMGM Sportsbook, partnered with Belterra, brought in $26.2 million in total sports betting handle and $2.5 million in gross receipts. Barstool Sportsbook had $8.6 million in total handle, PointsBet had $6 million, and BetRivers had $5.7 million. Barstool and PointsBet are partnered with Hollywood Lawrenceburg, while BetRivers is partnered with French Lick Resort.

Jacob Wayne

I've been a huge sports fan for as long as I can remember and I've always loved writing. In 2020, I joined the Lineups team, and I've been producing written and video content on football and basketball ever since. In May 2021, I graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in sport management. My goal is to tell enthralling stories and provide meaningful insight on the sports I write about while helping you cash some bets along the way.