It was a predictably quiet month for Michigan sportsbooks in May, reporting a total handle of $356.1 million. While a 10% decrease from April, it’s still a 38% increase from May of 2021.
Michigan online casinos and poker sites stayed strong, but did dip slightly from April’s record month. Internet gaming generated $127.4 million in revenue, falling 3.8% from the Michigan record $132.4 million last month.
“We’re firmly in the slow season for sports, so it’s no surprise sports betting numbers have cooled off,” said Paul Costanzo, lead analyst for PlayMichigan.com. “Online casinos, on the other hand, continue to thrive in the state. That consistency more than offsets the inherent ups and downs of the sports calendar.”
May 2022 Michigan sports betting numbers
Here are the top-line numbers from the Michigan Gaming Control Board.
- Handle: $356.1 million ($333.4 million online)
- Revenue: $35.9 million ($33.5 million online)
- Hold: 10.1% (up from 8.2% last month)
- Promotional credits: $11.1 million
- Month-over-month: Handle decreased 10%
- May sports betting taxes: $1.1 million to the state and $694,000 to local entities.
- Top online sports betting app by handle: FanDuel Sportsbook MI with $99.4 million
- Top online sports betting app by revenue: FanDuel with $15.2 million
May 2022 Michigan online casino revenue
Online casinos in Michigan continued to bring in big numbers in May:
- Online casino revenue: $127.4 million down 3.8% from April
- May online casino tax payments: $23.5 million to state and $9.8 million to local entities
- Top online casino app by revenue: BetMGM Michigan with $49.2 million
Top takeaways from May 2022 Michigan online gambling numbers
Michigan not dipping as much as other states
May was expected to see some fall back in sports betting handle, but Michigan’s dip of 10.2% is better compared to many of its peers.
Just by comparison, here are some other states and how far they fell from April to May:
- Indiana: 14%
- Maryland: 14%
- Iowa: 17%
- Mississippi: 18%
The $333.4 million is the lowest online handle in Michigan since August of last year, right on the cusp of NFL season. Still, the $33.5 million in revenue is the fourth-highest all-time in Michigan and second-best of 2022.
Year-to-year growth very strong
A reason why these dips in May are of no concern is that they are still a big jump from a year ago.
The overall sports betting handle is up 38% from May of 2021 ($257.7 million). The sports betting revenue is up 69% from a year ago ($21.2 million).
Internet gaming is also much higher year-to-year. The $127.4 million in online casino revenue last month is a 34.2% jump from the $94.9 million in May of 2021.
iGaming holding strong
Aside from just the year-to-year jump, internet gaming continues to hold strong in Michigan.
Despite a slight dip from April’s record month, Michigan still had the third-highest online casino revenue month in its history.
By comparison, 2021 saw just one month (December) with internet gaming revenue over $121 million. That has been surpassed in all five months of 2022 thus far.
DraftKings continuing sports betting slide
For most of 2021, DraftKings Sportsbook MI had been pushing FanDuel Sportsbook for the top online provider in Michigan.
FanDuel won most of the battles, but DraftKings has long held on to the second position.
However, DraftKings has been on a steady decline since the start of 2022, which has allowed BetMGM Michigan to take over the second position for the last three months.
Here’s a look at the market share from the top three online sportsbooks since 2022.
- January: FanDuel – 26.7%; DraftKings – 26.6%; BetMGM – 22.3%
- February: FanDuel – 30.7%; DraftKings – 23.8%; BetMGM – 21.8%
- March: FanDuel – 31.0%; DraftKings – 22.8%; BetMGM – 23.9%
- April: FanDuel – 31.9%; DraftKings – 21.0%; BetMGM – 24.2%
- May: FanDuel – 29.8%; DraftKings – 20.7%; BetMGM – 24.0%
All-time, DraftKings still holds 25% of the market share for online handle, second only to FanDuel (28.1%).
PlayEagle completes first month
Michigan’s 15th online sportsbook and internet gaming provider, PlayEagle Casino & Sports, had its first full month of operation in May of 2022.
It’s opening month of online sports betting saw it lose money to bettors. It took in $994,747 in handle and lost $14,884 overall. The online handle landed it 11th among Michigan’s internet operators.
By comparison, Parx Sportsbook was the last to debut prior to Soaring Eagle’s release. It had $1.46 million in online handle for its first full month of operation.
PlayEagle’s online casino had $1.4 million in revenue for May, which placed it 13th among internet gaming operators.
Michigan May 2022 sports betting handle and revenue by operator
| Licensee | Online Brand | Handle | Revenue | Hold | Taxes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MotorCity | FanDuel | $103,605,316 | $15,734,476 | 15.2% | $727,336 |
| MGM Grand Detroit | BetMGM | $85,415,532 | $9,021,899 | 10.6% | $328,928 |
| Bay Mills | DraftKings | $69,051,368 | $5,020,855 | 7.3% | $0 |
| Greektown | Barstool | $45,880,178 | $3,456,484 | 7.5% | $226,773 |
| Grand Traverse | Caesars | $27,023,962 | $710,949 | 2.6% | $0 |
| Lac Vieux Desert | PointsBet | $8,626,027 | $852,215 | 9.9% | $0 |
| Little River | BetRIvers | $6,435,050 | $453,924 | 7.1% | $0 |
| Little Traverse Bay | Fox Bet | $2,493,409 | $207,787 | 8.3% | $13,193 |
| Sault Ste. Marie | WynnBet | $2,383,519 | $96,856 | 4.1% | $1,994 |
| Nottawaseppi Huron | FireKeepers | $1,204,416 | $125,610 | 10.4% | $0 |
| Sagniaw Chippewa | Eagle | $994,747 | -$14,884 | -1.5% | $0 |
| Keweenaw Bay | Golden Nugget | $992,950 | $54,002 | 5.4% | $0 |
| Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish | Play Gun Lake | $741,065 | $60,534 | 8.2% | $0 |
| Pokagon | Four Winds | $668,106 | $80,814 | 12.1% | $0 |
| Hannahville | TwinSpires | $614,744 | $58,709 | 9.6% | $0 |
| Total | $356,130,390 | $35,920,231 | 10.1% | $1,298,224 |
Michigan May 2022 online casino revenue by operator
| Licensee | Brand | Revenue | Promos | State Tax | Local Tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MGM Grand Detroit | BetMGM | $49,238,654 | $4,923,865 | $8,685,699 | $4,276,377 |
| MotorCity | FanDuel | $20,076,406 | $2,007,641 | $3,541,478 | $1,743,636 |
| Bay Mills | DraftKings | $17,827,598 | $1,779,759 | $3,594,716 | $1,741,191 |
| Little River | BetRivers | $8,855,135 | $885,514 | $1,785,195 | $446,299 |
| Grand Traverse | Caesars | $6,465,549 | $646,555 | $1,303,455 | $325,864 |
| Keweenaw Bay | Golden Nugget | $6,154,354 | $615,435 | $1,240,718 | $310,179 |
| Sault Ste. Marie | WynnBet | $4,137,927 | $413,793 | $834,206 | $208,552 |
| Greektown | Barstool | $3,815,014 | $381,501 | $672,969 | $331,334 |
| Pokagon | Four Winds | $2,818,060 | $281,806 | $519,208 | $129,802 |
| Little Traverse Bay | Fox Bet | $2,462,716 | $246,272 | $462,787 | $115,697 |
| Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish | Play Gun Lake | $1,727,616 | $172,762 | $298,532 | $74,633 |
| Nottawaseppi Huron | FireKeepers | $1,436,948 | $143,695 | $227,613 | $56,903 |
| Saginaw Chippewa | Eagle | $1,368,148 | $136,815 | $197,013 | $49,253 |
| Hannahville | TwinSpires | $592,700 | $12,378 | $95,993 | $23,998 |
| Lac Vieux Desert | PointsBet | $408,679 | $42,066 | $58,658 | $14,665 |
| Total | $127,385,503 | $12,689,856 | $23,518,238 | $9,848,382 |