Indiana’s sports betting market has reported its strongest month since February as revenue and handle grew in July.
According to the latest figures from the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) bettors in the state of Indiana wagered $70.9m on sporting events in July, more than double the $28.9m wagered the month prior.
Sports betting revenue in July amounted to $6.7m, a 127.9% month-on-month increase on the $2.9m generated in June.
July marked the first full month in which the state’s casino sportsbooks were open following the shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. During the state-wide shutdown, casinos in Indiana were closed between 16 March and 15 June.
DraftKings leads the market
Looking closer at the figures from the IGC, DraftKings and FanDuel dominated the Indiana sports betting market in July.
Penn National Gaming’s Ameristar Casino, which hosts the DraftKings online platform, accounted for $34m of the state’s total handle and generated $3.1m in revenue. The land-based sportsbook at the venue processed $1.2m in sports wagers.
Blue Chip Casino, and its online partner FanDuel, processed $24.5m in sports bets and held onto $2.5m. Of this licensee’s handle, $24.2m came from FanDuel’s online sportsbook, while $246,397 was wagered at the land-based sportsbook.
Major US sports return
July also saw the return of betting on the US major sporting leagues with bettors in the state wagering $1.2m on football.
However, the biggest growth came from baseball betting which saw handle climb to $14.5m in July up from $2m in June, following the return of MLB events on 23 July.
Basketball bets also grew with bettors in the Hoosier State wagering $5.8m on basketball events up from $618,166 in June.
Betting on sports outside of the major US leagues remained the most popular in July, accounting for $33.4m of the state’s total betting handle.
Sports betting in Indiana
Indiana became the tenth state to legalize sports betting following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in 2018.
The state’s Governor, Eric Holcomb, signed HB 1015 into law in May 2019, legalizing land-based and state-wide mobile sports betting in the state of Indiana. Bettors can sign up for online sportsbook accounts remotely, from anywhere within the state.
Sports betting went live in Indiana on 1 September 2019, at the Ameristar Casino Hotel East Chicago, the Hollywood Casino & Hotel Lawrenceburg and Indiana Grand Racing & Casino
At the time of writing, bettors in the Hoosier State have several online sports betting options which include DraftKings, FanDuel, BetRivers, BetAmerica, PointsBet and BetMGM.
