Iowa’s sports betting market saw a significant increase in revenue and betting handle in October.
The latest figures from the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission (IRGC) reveal that bettors in the Hawkeye State wagered $81.8m on sports in October, a 76.1% increase on the $46.5m wagered in October 2019.
October’s betting handle also marks a significant increase on the $72.4m wagered in September.
Bettors in the state wagered $25m via land-based sportsbooks and $56.9m via the state’s online and mobile sportsbooks.
In terms of revenue, the state’s sportsbooks generated $9.1m from betting operations, with $2.7m coming from land-based sportsbooks and $6.4m from online betting.
Breaking down the figures
Looking closer at the figures, Penn National Gaming’s Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino, which is partnered with William Hill, led the market both in terms of handle and revenue. The licensee generated $2.3m in revenue from $19.8m in total bets.
Diamond Jo in Worth, and its sports betting partner FanDuel, came in second place in terms of Handle after bettors wagered $8.3m on sports. Of the licensee’s total handle, $5.4m came from the land-based sportsbook and $2.9m came from online betting. Revenue, however, amounted to $790,877, making the Diamond Jo the fourth-best performing operator in terms of revenue.
The Wild Rose Casino in Jefferson, which is partnered with DraftKings for sports betting, processed $8.2m in sports bets, with $8m of the licensees’ handle coming from the online sportsbook. In terms of revenue, the licensee managed to generate $877,082.
Penn National’s Ameristar II managed to generate $848,087 from sports betting making it the third-highest performing operator in the state. The licensee’s revenue came entirely from its land-based sportsbook which took $5.6m in bets.
Sports betting in Iowa
Governor Kim Reynolds signed Iowa’s betting bill into law in May 2019. With just 94 days between the signing of the bill and the launch of sports betting in the Hawkeye State, Iowa’s timeline to launch sports betting was one of the quickest in the US.
From 1 January 2021, bettors will be able to register online sportsbook accounts remotely from anywhere within the state, eliminating the inconvenience of having to travel to a casino. This is sure to be a positive development for both the state’s sportsbooks and consumers.
