November Ohio revenue: DraftKings leads, the ESPN effect & more

The state of Ohio has released its November sports gaming revenue, breaking down its revenue by providers both online and in retail. 

For the month, total taxable revenue was $68.2m, with $1.4m generated by retail sports gaming and the remaining $66.8m by online operations; a total of 97.9%. Total gross receipts came to $864.2m, with a similar 97.3% of receipts coming from online sports gaming.  

Of the $1.4m made in November by retail operators, Hollywood Columbus was the most significant contributor, followed closely by BetJack’s Jack Cleveland. The venues made $268,265 and $262,691 respectively. 

Meanwhile, DraftKings generated the largest percentage of the state’s November online sports gaming taxable revenue, at $22.5m. In second place was FanDuel, which generated $21m.  

These two operators have been shown to frequently compete for market dominance across the US. However, it is frequently FanDuel that takes the crown, having reported a 51.1% market share in New York in October and reporting a 47% share of the total market in its Q3 report. It therefore makes Ohio an interesting case, as it is one of the states where more players are turning to DraftKings than its closest rival. 

Breaking down online gaming revenue by operator, the top five are as follows.  

ESPN Bet made the top five despite only announcing its formation in August of last year, made more commendable when considering it was the operator with the highest amount of promotional gaming credits in the state. Bet365 also made the cut. However, its spot at number four shows it is still behind other major US operators.

The ‘ESPN effect’ is a trend we’ve seen in other states too.

Outside of these operators, Tipico did well in its home state, generating $482,573 or an increase of $10,795 from last month. 

Bally’s, Superbook and MVGBet all reported losses in November, making no contribution to November’s taxable revenue.  

Examining the year as a whole, January was the most profitable month by taxable revenue, totaling $209.6m. Of this amount, $206.1m was generated online, while the remaining $3.5m was made by retail sports gaming operators. January was also the highest revenue month for online sports gaming throughout the 11 months reported and the highest revenue generated by retail sports gaming. 

Of the total for January, 98.3% was generated by online sports gaming. 

The second highest taxable revenue month in Ohio was March, totaling $94.9m thanks to March Madness. Online revenue accounted for 96.9% of this total, at $92m.  

June was the lowest taxable revenue month for Ohio across the 11 months reported so far, with total revenue at $32.8m. Retail sports betting made less than $1m this month, with online sports wagering making $32.1m.  

Across the year so far, total taxable revenue was $847.9m; $20.2m from retail sports gaming and $827.7m from online operations. Overall, online sports gaming accounted for 97.6%. 

When looking at the report by operator, DraftKings and FanDuel consistently led online taxable revenue generation. The two frequently came close to equal revenue in some months, though FanDuel frequently came out on top. November was the first month in 2023 where DraftKings outperformed FanDuel.  

Beth Turner

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