End of Football Sees Indiana Sports Betting Handle Decline
Parlays Make Up 47% of Wagers in Hoosier State
Basketball may be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Indiana, but football is king in the Hoosier State—at least from a sports betting standpoint. There was a massive decline in Indiana sports betting handle in February, which coincided with the end of football season.
Indiana saw $408.6 million wagered against the Las Vegas odds in February, a significant drop from the $480.2 million wagered in January. However, February 2023 only saw wagers of $355.8 million, so the year-to-year increase was substantial.
Year-to-year betting is typically a better barometer of how sports betting is doing in a state due to the different seasons. It’s only logical there will be a steep increase in betting during September compared to August. That doesn’t mean the sportsbooks have grown substantially in one month.
It means football season is here. By the same token, a drop-off in February doesn’t mean the sportsbooks are going into a nose dive. It’s expected, as many people love to place NFL against the point spreads.
The State of Indiana pocketed $3.6 million after showing $5 million in tax revenue in January. However, the $3.6 million is higher than the $2.9 million the state received in February 2023.
DraftKings had the highest handle of the Indiana sportsbooks at $153.4 million, but FanDuel had the highest revenue at $13.8 million. Revenue for DraftKings was at $13.7 million. FanDuel was No. 2 in total handle at $126.5 million. Of FanDuel’s handle, $125.9 million came through mobile wagering, with $516,401 in bets placed at retail locations.
Bet365 posted solid numbers in its first full month in Indiana. The sportsbook generated just over $21 million in wagers, giving it the sixth-highest handle of any sportsbook. BetMGM, William Hill, and ESPN Bet posted slightly higher handle amounts.
Parlays Popular in Indiana
One key reason for the Indiana sports betting handle decline was the lack of parlays bet. After receiving $269.9 million in parlays in January, February saw just $191 million wagered on parlays. Sports bettors playing whatever is in season, so February did see an increase in basketball handle.
There was $113.1 million wagered on hoops in January, and that climbed to $117.5 million in February. However, football wagers went from $57.5 million in January to $14.1 million in February. While that’s not bad, considering there was just the Super Bowl and a few wagers on the Pro Bowl, it’s significant.
Surprisingly, baseball showed a decent increase in February from the previous month. After seeing just $106,241 wagered in January, that number increased to $2.1 million in February. Baseball fans are probably hitting the betting odds calculator and looking for values in futures bets.
There was also a decent-sized increase in “Other” wagers, which climbed to $83.6 million after being at $39.5 million in January. The wagers include hockey, golf, auto racing, soccer, and just about anything that doesn’t fall under the other categories.
The state is still seeing a decent amount of bets being placed, but the lack of football and the associated parlays that go with it, created the Indiana sports betting handle decline.
For Gambling news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
