Iowa Sees Expected Drop In April Sports Betting Handle
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April is always an interesting month for sports betting numbers because it is after all of the major events. February tends to see a dip after the NFL season end, and March is generally a rebound month with March Madness. We have yet to hit the NBA and NHL playoffs yet, which won’t happen until the middle of May. As we know, the end of the NBA season is not an ideal time to wager on the NBA, given the lack of injury and rotation news. Once the playoffs hit, that will change. Iowa‘s numbers came in at $118.4M for April, as they saw over a 25% decline from March. This isn’t a huge surprise, but the real question will be if Iowa can bounce back in May and are professional sports enough to carry the state.
Post March Madness
Iowa posted a record handle of $161.4M in March, largely thanks to March Madness. College sports are a very big draw in Iowa, especially with the in-state colleges. Mixing this in with what has been a dreadful NBA stretch of injuries and games that are not a factor, numbers were expected to take a dip. However, Iowa still posted over the $100M mark, and experts expect a bounce back in May with the NBA and NHL playoffs about to start. The state collected $521,455 in taxes for April.
What Sportsbook Leads The Way
Online betting continues to be the most popular way to wager these days, and 88% of it was done online in April. It has surpassed $100M each month since the start of 2021. William Hill has a pretty big stronghold on Iowa and took in $35.7M, which beat out DraftKings and BetRivers. FanDuel and BetMGM finished lower with a combined $26.1M in wagers. The Diamond Jo in Dubuque brought in $17.9M, which was one of five locations over $10M in the online handle. Iowa has a competitive environment, which might have helped the number get over $100M by many still trying to attract new users within the state.
What To Expect Over The Summer
While both professional and college football won’t begin until September, the next few months will be dedicated to the NBA and NHL playoffs. Iowa does not have a professional sports team that is in-state and also doesn’t have one nearby. That local interest won’t be there like it was for the Iowa college teams, but numbers should remain over the $100M mark over the next few months. We can look at the drop from March as a negative, but being over the $100M mark should be looked at as a positive, given it is the end of the regular season for NBA and NHL and only the beginning of the MLB season. There are also going to be other major events over the next few months, like the remaining two races for the Triple Crown, as well as the U.S. Open.
