Sports wagering total revenues in Illinois declined to approximately $679 million during February.
In February 2022, the Illinois online sports betting market showed a notable decline, with a total handle of $679.4 million, a 21.8% drop from January. Despite this month-over-month decrease, the market performed significantly better year-over-year, with a handle up 41.6% and revenue 22.2% higher compared to the same period in 2021.
The overall hold for February was 5.2%, a decrease of nearly 2.5 percentage points compared to the previous month. The house fared particularly well in golf, with a 13.6% win rate, generating nearly $1.2 million from $8.8 million wagered. Basketball wagering accounted for more than 42% of the overall handle, though it generated only 2.8% in revenue. Tennis and soccer combined contributed more than $5.6 million in operator revenue.
For February 2022, detailed operator-specific data on online sports betting handle and revenue is not available. However, based on market presence at the time, the top-performing operators most likely included FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars, and possibly ESPN BET. Operators like bet365 and Hard Rock Bet were not yet live in February 2022.
FanDuel claimed the top spot in both handle ($211.3 million) and revenue ($11.2 million) in February. Caesars, despite struggling to find traction in Illinois, posted losses in back-to-back months, contributing to four of the six mobile operator single-month losses in Illinois history.
BetRivers had the highest win rate (6.8%) among mobile operators in February, generating nearly $7.3 million in revenue from $106.8 million wagered. PointsBet held off Barstool Sportsbook for fourth place in both handle and revenue. DraftKings had the steepest decline in handle among online operators, dropping 26.7% to $207.8 million.
Hollywood Aurora used a registration promotion that led to nearly $1 million being wagered on live college sporting events. Operators claimed more than $13.4 million from parlays in February, with FanDuel accounting for more than half that total.
Illinois collected more than $5.3 million in taxes for February, with Cook County claiming $380,354 in tax receipts. Caesars, despite nearly doubling its handle year-over-year to $31.4 million, has paid out just shy of $33 million in 2022, resulting in a -4.9% hold.
As the Illinois Gaming Board releases monthly reports, we will continue to provide updates on the state's online sports betting market.
- Despite struggling to find traction in Illinois, Caesars posted losses in back-to-back months, contributing to four of the six mobile operator single-month losses in Illinois history.
- Operators claimed more than $13.4 million from parlays in February, with FanDuel accounting for over half that total.
- The Illinois online sports betting market, despite a notable decline in February 2022, still performed significantly better year-over-year, with a handle up 41.6% and revenue 22.2% higher compared to the same period in 2021.
