Maryland sports wagering total handle slipped in May to $431.5 million from April’s $486.3 million, a 11% drop. But it was a whopping 35% more than last May’s $320.1 million.
Sportsbooks collected $46.6 million in adjusted gross revenue in May, with tax revenue of $6.99 million, the second highest in state history.
All told, Maryland sports betting continued its brisk pace last month.
Parlay bets still most popular wagers in Maryland
Maryland sports betting was stimulated mostly by the NBA playoffs, which were in full effect during May.
Professional basketball wagers accounted for 25.4% of all wagers placed in May. Bettors wagered more than $109.6 million on pro basketball. Operators took home just $4.8 million from those bets, a very low hold percentage of 4.4%.
Parlay bets represented an even larger chunk of overall wagers at 32.7%. In total, $140.9 million was wagered on parlays. Players won $104.7 million on those bets, which meant operators enjoyed a 25.7% hold percentage. That’s why sportsbooks love parlays.
Of course, many of those parlay wagers included bets on the NBA.
The second most popular sport was professional baseball at $86.8 million, 20.1% of the overall total. Tennis came in third with $27.5 million, 6.4% of the total wagers placed.
FanDuel still the top operator in May
FanDuel, along with its partner Live! Casino and Hotel, proved once again in May that it’s the most popular option for sports bettors in the state.
FanDuel handled $195.2 million in May. Bettors took home $165.1 million, netting FanDuel $27.2 million of taxable win after subtracting $2.3 million in promotional plays and $482,114 in other deductions. Its hold percentage in May was 15.4%, which also led the state.
DraftKings took home the silver medal with a total handle of $137.4 million. Those wagers resulted in $124.8 million of winnings for bettors, which left $12.2 million of taxable revenue for DraftKings. Overall, its hold percentage was 9.2%.
The faraway third-place finisher was BetMGM, which took in $31.1 million in wagers and paid out $28.1 million. That left BetMGM with $2.9 million of taxable revenue and a hold percentage of 9.6%.
The top five online Marland sportsbooks in May with hold percentages in parentheses:
- FanDuel MD: $195.2 million (15.4%)
- DraftKings MD: $137.4 million (9.2%)
- BetMGM MD: $31.1 million (9.6%)
- Caesars Sportsbook MD: $17.5 million (6%)
- ESPN Bet MD: $16.8 million (8.4%)
MGM National Harbor leads the way in retail
As usual, retail sports betting was just a tiny slice of the Maryland sports betting pie in May.
Around $419.5 million was bet through Maryland online sportsbooks in May, compared to just $12 million at retail outlets.
MGM National Harbor led retail sports betting with $3.8 million. Bettors took home $3.4 million of winnings, which left just under $250,000 in revenue.
Live! came in second overall for retail handle with $2.9 million. After paying out $2.6 million to bettors, that led to $240,174 in revenue.
In third place was Horseshoe Casino and its sports betting partner, Caesars Sportsbook. It took in $1.2 million and paid out almost exactly $1 million in winnings. That left the operator with a hold percentage of 13.4%, about $97,954 in revenue.
The top five retail sportsbook operators in May:
1. MGM National Harbor: $3.8 million (10.1%)
2. Live! Casino and Hotel: $2.9 million (9.8%)
3. Horseshoe Baltimore: $1.2 million (13.4%)
4. Ocean Downs Casino: $1.2 million (8.9%)
5. Bingo World: $858,700 (5.6%)
