Indiana’s sports betting market saw a significant drop in revenue and handle in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to figures from the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC), Indiana’s Sports Betting Handle amounted to $74.8m in March representing a significant drop on the $187.2m wagered in February.
Revenue also took a hit in March with sportsbooks generating $5.5m from betting operations, representing a 50.5% month-on-month decline on the $11.1m generated the month prior.
The drop in handle and revenue can be attributed to the lack of sporting events to bet on. In March, all major US sports leagues, and several other sports leagues around the planet, decided to cancel or postpone events as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. On top of this, all Indiana casinos temporarily closed on March 16 resulting in a significant decrease in betting activity in the Hoosier State.
Breaking down the figures
Despite reporting a 56% month-on-month decrease in both handle and revenue, Penn National Gaming’s Ameristar Casino and its partner DraftKings continued to lead the state’s sports betting market in March. The operator handled $35.2m in sports wagers and held onto $2.7m in revenue. Mobile betting accounted for $33.1m of the venue’s total handle and $2.4m of the operator’s revenue.
Blue Chip Casino, which houses a FanDuel-branded sportsbook, came in second place in March after processing $22.3m in sports wagers, which was down 66.2% on last month’s $63.8m. The venue also saw a 22.6% drop in revenue to $1.6m in March.
These two licensees managed to outpace the competition March as no other venue in the state reported sports wagering handle greater than $4m in March.
Rush Street’s French Lick Resort, which features a Kambi-powered sportsbook, came in third place in March. Sports betting handle across land-based and online betting amounted to $3.7m, while the operator generated $327,456 in revenue from betting operations. Mobile accounted for $3.6m of all wagers placed with the operator.
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.
