It’s the dog days of summer for Maryland sports betting. But at least the air conditioning is pumping, and all systems are firing despite the sultry conditions and paltry sports schedule.
Maryland sportsbooks reported $333.3 million in July betting volume, the lowest monthly total in 2024. It was 13.4% less than June ($384.7 million), the only two months with handles below $400 million.
However, handle grew by 34.7% year over year. July was also the slowest month in 2023, with a $247.4 million handle.
Sportsbooks’ winnings up in a down month
Bettors fared poorly in July, winning $289.5 million. This resulted in a 13.1% hold, the second highest in the last 14 months of Maryland sports betting.
Sportsbooks won nearly $43.8 million for the month, with $41.7 million of that revenue taxable. Despite having a lower handle than June, taxable winnings from Maryland sports betting grew by 9.2% ($38.2 million). They grew by 48.3% from July 2023 ($28.1 million).
July’s state contributions totaled $6.3 million, the result of a 15% sports betting tax. It was the fourth-best month in state history for tax contributions.
Tax contributions increased by 9.2% from June ($5.7 million) and 88.8% from July 2023 ($3.3 million). Last July’s taxable winnings were only $22 million due to $5.6 million in promotional deductions during the state’s first month with mobile sports betting.
Mobile wagers comprised 97.5% of the state’s wagers ($324.9 million) and 97.6% of taxable winnings ($40.7 million). They also accounted for all of the growth, as retail action declined from July 2023:
- Retail handle: $7.1 million (-28.2% YoY from $9.9 million)
- Retail taxable winnings: $1 million (-34.9% YoY from $1.6 million)
- Taxes paid: $151,000 (-34.9% YoY from $231,000)
No major changes to the pecking order
Maryland had a busy July, with two operators entering the market and one leaving. Veterans Services launched LetsBetMD Sportsbook on July 1, and Bally Bet went live on July 30. On the other hand, SuperBook shuttered operations between the two on July 19.
Those small changes in scenery did not affect the state’s market share.
FanDuel Maryland, the state’s clear leader, accepted $145.9 million in July wagers, amassing a 44.9% market share. It had a 43.6% share in June.
FanDuel had a 14.7% hold, resulting in $21.1 million in taxable winnings. These numbers exceeded DraftKings Maryland, which finished second in both categories by a significant margin.
That said, DraftKings posted impressive totals of its own, with a $106.5 million handle and $12.2 million in taxable winnings. Its 32.8% market share fell from 34.3% in June.
A clear separation from the top two
The 11 remaining sportsbooks accounted for the other $72.6 million in wagers and $7.3 million in taxable winnings.
Four had eight-figure handles, including ESPN Bet Maryland, and one had a seven-figure handle. ESPN Bet barely hit that mark and fell to sixth in the state, below Fanatics Sportsbook Maryland. ESPN Bet still outperformed Fanatics in the revenue department.
- BetMGM Maryland: $25.6 million handle; $3.1 million taxable win
- Caesars Sportsbook Maryland: $16.2 million handle; $1.5 million taxable win
- Fanatics Sportsbook: $13.2 million handle; $920,000 taxable win
- ESPN Bet: $10.5 million handle; $1.1 million taxable win
- BetRivers Sportsbook Maryland: $5.2 million handle; $514,000 taxable win
The final six sportsbooks reported under $1 million handles.
- betPARX: $802,000 handle; $86,000 taxable win
- Crab Sports: $584,000 handle; $33,000 taxable win
- Veterans Services: $131,000 handle; $15,000 taxable win
- Betfred: $90,000 handle; $0 taxable win (closed in June)
- Bally Bet: $60,000 handle; $1,000 taxable win (opened on July 30; two days of data)
Parlays make up 33% of July wagers
Marylanders have maintained their affinity for parlays through the summer months, even with fewer sports and sporting events. Parlay wagers amounted to $109.3 million in July, or 32.8% of every dollar wagered.
Unsurprisingly, baseball had the most wagers of all individual sports. Its $85.1 million handle accounted for another 25.5% of wages.
Parlays generated more than triple the revenue of baseball wagers, though. Sportsbooks held $26 million (23.8%) from parlay wagers compared to $7.9 million (9.3%) from baseball.
Three other sports drew eight figures’ worth of betting action in July. More revenue came from baseball than all three combined.
- Pro basketball: $40.9 million handle (12.3% of wagers); $2.6 million hold (6.3%)
- Tennis: $37.6 million handle (11.3% of wagers); $2.1 million hold (5.5%)
- Soccer: $22.5 million handle (6.7% of wagers); $1.4 million hold (6.4%)
