Illinois Sportsbooks Set New High In January With Nearly $870 Million In Wagers

Written By Staff on March 10, 2022 – Last Updated on April 7, 2022

According to Play Illinois, as the sports betting market enters a new era, NBA recognition and NFL playoffs continue to drive significant action.

(LAS VEGAS) — Illinois sportsbooks began 2022 with a significant boost in betting, pushing the monthly handle in January to almost $870 million for the first time. Factors such as an extended NFL regular season and expanded playoffs that stretched over five weekends, along with increasing basketball betting activity, made January a favorable month for the sports calendar. According to Play Illinois, a platform that monitors the state’s regulated online gaming and sports betting market, this robust start sets the stage for substantial progress in the coming year, particularly given the recent elimination of in-person registration requirements.

Joe Boozell, the lead scientist for Play-Illinois.com, stated that the accelerated pace of the past four months will be advantageous for sportsbooks. This is due to a significant change in Illinois sports gambling, as it evolved into a new phase on March 5. The need for in-person registration was abolished, which could potentially propel Illinois to eclipse other states and become the second-largest market in the U.S this year. Boozell also observed that sports betting has progressively permeated throughout the state.

Official data released on Thursday shows that sportsbooks in Illinois broke the previous October record of $840.4 million by generating $867.5 million in online and retail wagers in January. This indicates a 9.9% increase from $789.6 million in December and a 49.2% rise compared to $581.6 million generated in January 2021. Additionally, the daily betting volume increased from $25.5 million in December to $28.8 million over the 31 days in January.

The net profit of sportsbooks rose from $36.2 million in December to $59.3 million in January. This represents a 20.2% increase from the $49.4 million profit in January 2021. Additionally, tax revenue amounted to $66.2 million, contributing $10.7 million to state and local treasuries.

In January, legal jurisdictions across the nation, including Illinois’ neighbors who also have sports betting – Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan, achieved record-breaking wagering. This significant increase was influenced by the addition of the national championship game for college football, an expanded playoff format, and an extra week of regular-season NFL football.

Football betting in Illinois generated $224.1 million in January, a decrease from December’s $265.7 million. The state announced that over $60 million of these were related to the Super Bowl, demonstrating the high level of interest from bettors so far this year. However, basketball also contributes significantly. NBA betting climbed to $276.2 million in January, a rise from December’s $226.4 million.

Eric Ramsey, an analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network (which includes Play Illinois.net) stated that the NFL’s decision to extend its regular and playoffs schedule significantly benefited sportsbooks. Ramsey pointed out that the additional games, all squeezed into a single month, led to impressive figures in Illinois and other locations.

In January, online betting accounted for $829.1 million or 95.6% of all bets. DraftKings, the state’s leading operator, controlled a total of $293.2 million in online and retail, including $283.7 million from online betting alone. This generated a gross profit of $17.2 million.

FanDuel ranked second with $261.2 million in retail and online wagers, inclusive of $299.1 million. This resulted in a gross profit of $23.0 million, the highest for the state.

Licensee	Brand on the internet	Handle	Revenue	Hold	Taxes
East St. Louis game Queen	DraftKings	$293,210,435	$17,213,926	5.9%	$3,102,273
Park Fairmount	FanDuel	$261,179,473	$22,997,524	8.8%	$4,143,730
Des Plaines Rivers	BetRivers	$147,649,772	$11,172,020	7.6%	$1,915,269
Hawthorne	PointsBet	$77,735,892	$4,079,237	5.2%	$706,350
Aurora in Hollywood	Barstool	$63,707,639	$3,800,551	6.0%	$678,044
Queen Victoria	Caesars	$16,585,947	-$847,739	-5.1%	$12,224
Argosy		$4,754,099	$495,186	10.4%	$66,644
Joliet from Hollywood		$1,664,912	$289,413	17.4%	$39,542
Par-A-Dice	FanDuel	$1,017,325	$143,261	14.1%	$23,379
Total		$867,505,495	$59,343,378	6.8%	$10,687,455

The dawn of a new era is expected to bring larger figures. Play Illinois estimates that the NCAA Tournament and the abolition of in-person registration rules could see wagers nearing $1 billion in March. BetMGM, a new operator, was launched over the weekend. More new sportsbook launches are anticipated in Illinois in 2022.

“Boozell claims that the sports betting scene in Illinois has been challenging in its initial two years, making it one of the more peculiar markets in the U.S. Despite these challenges, the top casinos have managed to thrive. Ideally, the adjustments should help expand the market and foster a more competitive and beneficial environment.”

For more information, visit Play-illinois.com/news.