Indiana’s sports betting market has begun to recover following the shutdown of almost all major sports due to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the latest figures from the Indiana Gaming Commission, sports betting handle amounted to $37.3m in May, up 41.9% month-on-month from the $26.3m wagered in April.
Indiana’s casinos have been closed since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic, which means that the state’s land-based sportsbooks have also been closed. The only way to bet on sports in Indiana since then has been via the state’s online sports betting apps.
After paying out players winnings, the taxable sports betting revenue generated in May amounted to $3.2m, up from the $1.6m generated the month prior.
The figures for May indicate that bettors in the state shifted to betting on different sports beyond the US major leagues.
Breaking down the figures
Looking closer at the figures, DraftKings, which is partnered with Penn National Gaming’s Ameristar Casino, continued to lead the market. The licensee generated $1.8m in revenue after bettors wagered $20.1m via the DraftKings betting app.
DraftKings’ main competitor, FanDuel, which is partnered with Blue Chip Casino, came in second place after generating $1.1m in revenue from $12.3m in sports bets.
DraftKings and FanDuel collectively accounted for 86.8% of the state’s betting handle and 90.9% of the state’s betting revenue in May.
French Lick Resort, which hosts Rush Street’s BetRivers sportsbook took $2.4m in bets and held on to $175,591, putting it in third place in May.
The BetMGM sportsbook which serves the state through Belterra Casino’s license came in fourth place after generated $114,210 in revenue from $2.4m in bets.
The state’s other online sports betting options, Caesars, PointsBet and BetAmerica posted handle for the month but after paying out customer winnings, these operators made a loss for the month.
Bettors find new sports to bet on
The figures published in May indicate that betting activity has shifted to other sports as US major league sports have yet to resume.
Bettors in the state wagered $30.5m on “other” sports outside of football, basketball, and baseball. Although the regulator did not break down the “other” category any further, it indicates that betting activity has shifted to sports such as table tennis, soccer, and MMA. This was also seen in Oregon’s sports betting figures for May.
Baseball handle amounted to $959,023 in May, the same month that the Korean Baseball Championship made a return. Football handle amounted to $437,753, while bettors wagered $9,908 on basketball. Indiana’s sportsbooks took $5.1m in wagers on parlay bets.
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.
