Kentucky's Sports Betting Handle Stays High, Revenue Drops In December
Kentucky ended 2024 with an 11% year-over-year increase in sports betting action.
The Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation reported that $293 million was wagered in December 2024, the second-highest manage behind November 2024's $301.7 million. This marked the fourth successive month with action exceeding $250 million.
However, the most affordable hold on gross revenue produced yet in the Bluegrass State resulted in only $20.2 million in revenue, a 38% decline from December 2023 and down almost 45% month-over-month.
Similar to October, when Kentucky's online and retail operators produced a 7.7% hold, NFL favorites had excellent success in the last full month of the regular season. Bettors cashed in, resulting in a 6.9% hold on gross revenue that was down 5 points from November.
The adjusted revenue of $19.5 million came on a 6.7% hold, likewise the most affordable ever in Kentucky.
The Bluegrass State took $2.9 million in tax revenue, below the $5 million received in November.
Exceeding forecasts
Kentucky's first complete year of sports betting generated $2.6 billion in wagers and $283.7 million in gross earnings from a 10.7% hold. Adjusted earnings reached $276.9 million behind a double-digit win rate.
When sports betting very first started in the Bluegrass State in 2023, officials predicted $23 million in annual tax income. In 2024 alone, the state collected $39.3 million. Kentucky has filled its coffers with nearly $55 million in 15 months of operation.
DraftKings nearly creates $1 billion
Legal online sports betting created $285.5 million in wagers and $20.3 million in gross profits during December.
DraftKings nearly matched its record-setting November with a December manage of $111.7 million, down about $700,000 from the previous month. Gross profits fell from $15 million to $8.7 million month-over-month.
The online sportsbook ended up 2024 with the highest manage, falling less than $2 million shy of $1 billion in the quantity bet for the year.
FanDuel created a higher profit margin in December, getting $9.1 million of gross earnings on a $95.4 million deal with. FanDuel's 9.5% hold was the highest amongst all 8 online operators, and the online sportsbook finished second in annual handle with $862 million in 2024.
No other sportsbook reached $1 million in revenue throughout December. bet365 completed third with a $23.9 million handle while BetMGM, Caesars, and Fanatics Sportsbook all $13 million.
Circa Sports lost over $800,000 on a manage of $6.8 million to end in the red for 2024. On $6.7 million in wagers, ESPN BET produced a 3.2% hold in December however still profited $7.2 million for the year.
Retail fails again
Brick-and-mortar sportsbooks took a nearly $52,000 loss on a $7.6 million handle in December. Adjusted revenue finished $70,000 in the red.
It's the second time in three months that retail sports betting operators took a loss. In October, three of the eight shops reported adjusted income numbers in the red.