The Illinois tax office collected $7 million in August, which amounts to $306.3 million since Illinois sports betting was legalized in 2020.
DraftKings Tops State Bookmakers
DraftKings Sportsbook IL led the state’s seven mobile bookmakers with $237.3 million in wagers, earning the Boston-based bookmaker $15.8 million on a 6.6% hold.
FanDuel Sportsbook took in the second-most wagers of all Illinois online sportsbooks, but the $17.3 generated revenue topped the state.
BetRivers Sportsbook did well enough during August to handle the third-most wagers in the state, but the $4.8 million in revenue placed it fourth in Illinois.
According to betting handle, Caesars Sportsbook, BetMGM Sportsbook, PointsBet Sportsbook, and Barstool Sportsbook round out the seven.
Baseball Top Wagered Sport During August
Illinois residents chose to wager on pro baseball most often during August. The success of the Chicago Cubs likely fueled the $206.2 million wagered on “America’s Pastime.” They were successful enough for the bookies to report a 3.7% win rate, which likely means plenty of August wagers on the Cubs.
Tennis was second to baseball in terms of betting popularity. Bookies accepted $89.1 million in wagers and won 6.9% of them. Soccer ($51.1 million), basketball ($37.5 million), and football ($32.2 million) round out the top five most popular individual betting markets.
Parlays Still King of Ilinois
Illinois residents bet $179.1 million on parlay cards in August. This includes teasers, same-game parlays, and other premade cards by celebrities and touts promoting sportsbooks. The bookmakers reported earnings of $24.6 million with a 13.7% win rate.
What Does this Mean for Illinois Sports Bettors?
Illinois is a robust sports betting market and became the fourth state to accept $25 billion in wagers during August. That number is incredible, as is the $2 billion in revenue the bookmakers have generated in just 40 months.
Most of those earnings can be attributed to parlay cards. While Illinois residents beat the bookies more often in August, the state’s 8.08% average hold rate would be halved if Prairie State residents just said no to the parlay cards.
Finally, Illinois residents wagered $32.4 million on football in August, which was on a handful of college games. The state will likely generate over $1 billion during the entire month of September, which is when college and NFL football are played.
