August was the first full month for live dealer games at Michigan’s online casinos. It was also the month that the state’s online gaming operators made a record $97.2 million in revenue.
Data from the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) show August revenue was up 5.3% from July. The MGCB’s overall gross revenue figures includes revenue from online poker. Since the agency does not separate poker from overall revenue, poker’s contribution to the final total is unknown.
BetMGM Casino MI, the state’s lead operator, grew its revenue and market share to record highs in August. But the state’s second- and third-largest operators, DraftKings Casino MI and FanDuel Casino, lost both.
That was rare in August, when nearly all of the state’s operators either grew or had flat revenue. None lost more than a full percentage point in terms of market share, but both DraftKings and FanDuel did.
BetMGM Casino MI hits record $39.7 million
BetMGM MI had a record $39.7 million in gross revenue and a record 41% share of the market in August. By comparison, it grossed $33.8 million and had 36.5% of the market in July.
The biggest month-to-month decline in revenue befell DraftKings, which had $12.6 million in revenue and a 13% market share in August, down from $15.2 million and 16.5%, respectively, in July. FanDuel also saw declines, but smaller ones—it grossed $14.2 million in revenue in August and had 14.5% of the market, but that was down from $14.4 million and 15.5% in July.
The rest of the state’s operators collectively had $30.6 million in revenue and held 31.7% of the market in August, up from 31.5% in July. Their combined revenue was $30.6 million, up about 6% from July, when they grossed $28.9 million.
The next five operators, all considered mid-tier in terms of revenue and size, all saw their revenue and market share plateau in August.
Rush Street, which operates the BetRivers Casino MI brand in Michigan, had $7.1 million in revenue and 7.4% of the market in August. Golden Nugget and Wynn followed, nearly neck-and-neck, with about $5.2 million in revenue and market shares just above 5%.
The remaining mid-tier operators, FoxBet/PokerStars and Penn Sports/Barstool, had $3.1 million and $2.5 million in revenue, respectively. They held 3.2% and 2.6% of the market in August.
Sports betting plummets to $15.9 million
Online sports betting revenue dropped to $15.9 million in August, the third-lowest month since the market’s inception in January.
FanDuel’s revenue and market share tumbled to $4.8 million, down from $7.8 million in July. DraftKings came close to knocking FanDuel from its perch by grossing $4.4 million, up from $3.1 million in July.
DraftKings did, however, manage to move past BetMGM Sportsbook MI for the second place spot. BetMGM MI grossed $3.9 million in August, down from $5 million in July.
The biggest of the smallest sportsbooks in the state, PointsBet and Penn Sports/Barstool, made about $940k and $742k, respectively.
WSOP MI is expected to open the third legal online poker room in the Great Lakes State in the coming days. The other legal poker rooms are operated by PokerStars MI and BetMGM Poker MI.
