It was a banner year for the sports betting industry in the state of Maryland, and it was a record-setting finish to the calendar year. The total sports betting handle in December checked in at $559.9 million, which was a record total for the state.
Beyond a record-setting handle in December, this state also finished the entire year strong as this was the second straight month with a record. Total sports betting handle was just 1.7% higher in December than in the previous month, but any growth is a great sign for the sportsbooks.
An even better sign for this industry in Maryland is that the December 2023 total was more than 12% higher than what was reported just 12 months ago. December 2022 was actually the first full month of mobile wagering, and things got started quickly in this state.
There are currently 12 mobile sports betting apps in Maryland, and that continues to be where most of the betting is done. Mobile sports betting accounted for over $542 million of the total sports betting handle.
Sportsbooks posted a gross revenue of $62.3 million in December 2023, and that was the second highest total ever recorded. December 2022 was the most profitable month on record, and that is something that many other states have seen as well.
For the year, the state of Maryland was able to collect $46.2 million in tax revenue, and that was another area of massive growth in this industry.
Parlays Great For Sportsbooks
A parlay wager continues to be one of the most popular options for sports bettors, and sportsbooks don’t mind that at all. This continues to be the best way for many states to rack up the profits and that was the case again in Maryland.
Parlay wagering accounted for $254.8 million of the total handle in December, and that is a bet that has continued to grow in popularity. Sportsbooks held 19.1% of the betting action from parlays, and that also made up a huge chunk of the revenue.
The total revenue from parlays checked in at $48.5 million during the month of December, which was close to 80% of the total. Other states have posted similar numbers, but sportsbooks continue to entice sports bettors to make this type of bet.
Single games wagers continue to be the best bet to make for bettors as they were able to win over 95% of that action. It was a tough month for sportsbooks in the state on NFL betting action as the hold rate was just 2% in December.
ESPN BET Making Moves
ESPN BET officially launched back in November, with December being the first full month that the mobile app was available. Maryland is the first state to show a full month of betting action for ESPN BET in relation to the other operators in the market.
ESPN BET was able to rack up a total sports betting handle of over $42 million in December, and that number was up from $33.3 million in November. This mobile operator was expected to challenge the leaders in this industry, but that just hasn’t happened at this time.
The market share for ESPN BET in December was still under eight percent, but it is an operator that is showing growth. FanDuel Sportsbook had a market share of over 45% for the month, and DraftKings was next on the list with over 30% in market share.
As expected, FanDuel not only led in the total sports betting handle, but it also clearly had an edge in gross sports betting revenue.
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