Both Indiana and Washington DC saw a double-digit decline in sports betting revenue for June. Indiana sports betting revenue dropped by 38% while Washington DC plummeted by 54.3%.
The total sports betting handle for DC was also disappointing as it slumped by 29.5%. However, there was a silver lining for Indiana as its handle increased by 4% to $256.3m, indicating there was not a complete drop-off in sports betting wagers.
Despite Washington DC’s poor performance, Maryland was seen to have contributed to an overall increase of 140% to $98.8m. This is due to its new market launches; for instance, BetFred’s recent opening of a sportsbook in Frederick, Maryland.
These poor showings for both Indiana and DC can be largely attributed to the lack of major sporting events in June. The spring and summer are traditionally slower seasons for sports betting. The NBA season is finished, the MLB is the only major sports league still in play.
FanDuel led Indiana’s sports betting market, with its Boyd’s Blue Chip sportsbook holding a 35.1% share of the market. DraftKings followed with 22.9%, while BetMGM came third with a 20% share. These three sports operators often dominate the sports betting market in the states where legalization has occurred.
However, this was not the case in DC, where Intralots Gambit took a lion’s share of the market with 44.3%, followed by Caesars at 40.9%.
When Washington DC first legalized sports betting in 2018, they granted Intralot betting rights within minutes of the legislation passing. Council leaders claimed this was to get the industry up and running before neighboring states did.
