November data from the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) show the state’s online casino market will exceed $1 billion in its inaugural year.
Despite a 1.9% decline in revenue to $107.6 million in November, casino revenue stayed above the $100 million mark for the third consecutive month. Cumulative revenue for the year climbed to $992.2 million with November included in the total, meaning that reaching $1 billion is likely a foregone conclusion.
Lower revenue for November also signaled the end of four consecutive months of increasing revenue and three months of record revenue overall.
Revenue figures for online casinos include poker because the MGCB does not separate revenue from the two verticals. Since they are not reported separately, poker’s independent contribution to the final total is not known.
Top operator BetMGM MI remained well ahead of the competition, but the $40.1 million it grossed in November was a little off from its record last month of $41.4 million. DraftKings and FanDuel continued to closely mirror each other and wound up tied at $16.8 million, compared to a record $19.7 million for DraftKings and a near-record $17.6 million for FanDuel in October.
The trio of BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel accounted for 65.5% of the market in November, down from 71.7% in October. There are 11 other operators that collectively make up the rest of the competition.
FOX Bet/PokerStars Rebound in November
BetRivers Casino MI led the group of five mid-tier online operators with $7 million in revenue for November, but that was down from $7.3 million in October. Golden Nugget had a better month, with revenue climbing to a record $5.8 million, up from $5.2 million. In sixth place, Barstool also fared slightly better in November — revenue ticked up to $4.6 million, up from $4.5 million.
FOX Bet MI and PokerStars MI rebounded strongly from a miserable October. The partners on the Odawa Casinos license grossed $2.5 million in November, up from just $985k the month prior. But they weren’t completely back to the $2.9 million posted in September, and the $5.8 million they grossed in March seems like a distant memory.
Wynn was the only other mid-tier operator besides BetRivers with lower revenue than the previous month, but the decline was small. Wynn grossed $4.2 million in November, down from $4.3 million in October.
All but one of the six smallest operators in Michigan saw increased revenue. Caesars posted the biggest gain and got to $2.4 million in November, up from $1.7 million the month before. It was also just enough revenue to put Caesars at the top of the smallest operators, slipping in front of Pala for 9th place overall. Pala also grossed $2.4 million, up from $2.1 million.
Parx, Firekeepers, and PointsBet had revenue of $1.5 million, $1.3 million, and $801k in November — up from $1.4 million, $1.1 million and $641k in October, respectively. TwinSpires saw its casino revenue slide to $1.4 million, down from $1.8 million.
Sports Betting Revenue Explodes
Revenue from mobile and online sports wagering hit a record $54.1 million in November — more than double the $24.3 million made in October — and an amount that far exceeds every other month the market has been active. The previous record was $32.3 million from March.
FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM grossed $18.3 million, $13.1 million, and $12.7 million in revenue in November, up from $10.3 million, $2.9 million and $7.5 million in October, respectively. The trio accounted for 81.6% of online sportsbook revenue in November.
Michigan also saw another record handle for the month, $473.8 million in November. The previous record was the $463.3 million handle from October.
DraftKings Sportsbook MI accounted for $126.3 million of November’s handle, followed by FanDuel Sportsbook MI ($115.2 million) and BetMGM Sportsbook MI ($100.8 million).
Barstool Sportsbook managed to fend off Caesars Sportsbook for fourth place in handle with $41.3 million. Caesars brought in $37.8 million. Meanwhile, PointsBet Sportsbook surged to a handle of $27.1 million, up from $17.1 million in October.
