Illinois sports betting numbers continued a sharp decline in June, but, comparatively speaking, the state is one of only two that is bucking an overall national downward trend. And, Illinois continues to further solidify its position as the country’s second biggest sports betting jurisdiction.
Numbers released today by the Illinois Gaming Board show Illinois sportsbook sites had total bets (called handle) of nearly $666 million in June. That’s down 19% from May’s total of $821.7 million and off 26% from April’s total of some $900 million.
Revenue numbers were off even more. Illinois revenue declined 43% from $91.5 million in May to $52.2 million in June.
Blame a lighter professional and college sports calendar for the month-over-month downward Illinois sportsbook revenue trend.
But, compared to June 2022 numbers, Illinois is one of only two states showing growth in sports betting handle (New York is the other).
And, the Prairie State is only three months removed from its best sports betting month in history. Illinois set an all-time record in March with $1.072 billion in total bets. It was the fifth month in the previous six in which it surpassed $1 billion in handle.
Gap over New Jersey widening as Illinois locks down #2 spot in the nation
Despite falling behind New Jersey into third place in June in the revenue department — New Jersey won that battle $66.4 million to $52.2 million — overall Illinois is pulling away from the Garden State.
Year-to-date through June, Illinois has a $200 million advantage in handle over New Jersey and is up nearly $4 million in revenue. And Illinois widened its leads in June compared to May.
Still, New York is the nation’s clear leader with handle of $9.2 billion so far in 2023, compared to Illinois year-to-date handle of $5.4 billion. New Jersey is at $5.2 billion on the year.
PlayIllinois has long predicted that by the end of the year Illinois will hold down a solid spot as the second-best sports betting market in the nation. The numbers continue to bear that out. And with both the Circa Sportsbook and Hard Rock Bet expected to launch in September, Illinois should jump from seven to nine sportsbook operators before the year ends.
Year-to-date Illinois numbers are showing solid growth
Through the first six months of the year, Illinois ranks second in handle behind only New York. The Prairie State is third in revenue ($484.5 million) behind New York (nearly $818 million) and Ohio ($542 million). Illinois is third in taxes in 2023 ($80 million) behind New York ($416 million) and Pennsylvania ($84.4 million).
Year-to-date, Illinois up 41% in revenue, 45% in taxes and 15% in handle
Through June of 2022, Illinois had handle of more than $4.7 billion (3rd), revenue of more than $344 million (2nd) and collected taxes of nearly $55 million (2nd).
That means year-to-date through June, Illinois is up 15% in handle, 41% in revenue and 45% in taxes when compared to year-to-date numbers through June 2022.
It’s important to note that in March of 2022, fresh legislation came into effect allowing Illinois residents to sign-up online for sportsbooks, rather than doing so at one of the state’s land-based casinos. The decision to allow residents to register online with one of the state’s seven legal sportsbooks has been a boon to the industry.
Year-to-date rankings through June 2023:
Handle
- New York — $9.2 billion
- Illinois — $5.4 billion
- New Jersey — $5.2 billion
- Nevada — $4 billion
- Ohio — $3.8 billion
Revenue
- New York — $818 million
- Ohio — nearly $542 million
- Illinois — $484.5 million
- New Jersey — $441 million
- Pennsylvania — $330 million
Taxes
- New York — $416 million
- Pennsylvania — $84.4 million
- Illinois — $80 million
- New Jersey — $62 million
- Ohio — $54 million
A closer look at June Illinois sports betting numbers
Illinois ranked second in the US in June in total handle behind only New York (nearly $1.17 billion bet). Keep in mind, there are seven million more people living in New York than live in Illinois.
In terms of sports betting taxes, Illinois ranked third in June with $8.9 million. New York, which has a 51% tax rate, collected $53 million in taxes in June. New Jersey had $9.2 million in taxes. Though, Illinois, which has an effective tax rate below 16%, did out-perform Pennsylvania and its 25.7% tax rate in June. Illinois ranked behind Pennsylvania in May.
IL sports betting revenue – June 2023
| Licensee | Online Brand | Handle | Revenue | Hold | Taxes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Casino Queen East St. Louis | DraftKings | $232,659,769 | $16,379,647 | 7% | $2,772,235 |
| Fairmount Park | FanDuel | $222,304,124 | $21,113,957 | 9.5% | $3,517,608 |
| Rivers Des Plaines | BetRivers | $60,647,132 | $5,333,328 | 8.8% | $930,810 |
| Grand Victoria | Caesars | $46,611,508 | $2,536,730 | 5.4% | $420,155 |
| Hawthorne | PointsBet | $42,440,875 | $2,353,549 | 5.5% | $408,962 |
| Par-A-Dice | BetMGM | $35,190,052 | $2,548,704 | 7.2% | $440,855 |
| Hollywood Aurora | Barstool | $23,031,311 | $1,625,673 | 7.1% | $320,537 |
| Argosy | $2,128,317 | $270,478 | 12.7% | $35,610 | |
| Hollywood Joliet | $757,659 | $126,143 | 16.6% | $15,266 | |
| Total | $665,770,747 | $52,288,208 | 7.9% | $8,862,040 |
June 2023
Handle
- New York — $1.17 billion
- Illinois — $666 million
- New Jersey — $591 million
- Nevada — $479 million
- Pennsylvania — $373 million
Revenue
- New York — $104 million
- New Jersey — $66.4 million
- Illinois — $52.2 million
- Pennsylvania — $33.9 million
- Massachusetts — $33 million
Taxes
- New York — $53 million
- New Jersey — $9.2 million
- Illinois — $8.9 million
- Pennsylvania — $8.3 million
- Massachusetts — $6.4 million
Illinois will exceed $2 billion in lifetime sports betting revenue in July
Illinois will reach a milestone when the IGB releases July numbers. The state will exceed $2 billion in lifetime sports betting revenue. Through June, all-time Illinois sports betting revenue sits at $1.96 billion.
As for other milestones, in May Illinois surpassed $300 million in lifetime sports betting tax revenue. Adding in the June numbers, over $312 million in taxes have been collected from sports betting in Illinois since sports betting was legalized in Illinois in March 2020.
That tax revenue is earmarked to the state’s Sports Wagering Fund. Money left over in that fund, after expenses, is transferred to the Capital Projects Fund that helps build and maintain infrastructure in Illinois.
Lifetime, more than $24 billion ($24,059,865,704 to be exact) has been bet on sports in Illinois. The Land of Lincoln exceeded $20 billion in lifetime handle in February and ranks fourth behind New Jersey ($38.9 billion), Nevada ($33.5 billion) and New York ($25.5 billion).
Through June (with not all sports betting states yet to report), nearly $246.2 billion has been bet on sports through legal sportsbooks in the United States. That amounts to just shy of $20 billion in total revenue and over $3.5 billion in taxes.
