Can Michigan Overtake New Jersey in Online Betting Stakes?

In the state of Michigan, online casino venues, as well as online sports betting and poker sites, can operate legally since late 2019. Back in December 2019, the state’s Governor Gretchen Whitmer made this happen by signing the new Lawful Internet Gaming Act. Today, the Wolverine State takes advantage of the growing, thrilling online sports betting and casino gaming market. Unlike some other states, here all sorts of iGaming activities are legal.

While the Lawful Internet Gaming Act was signed in late 2019, renowned Michigan sports betting sites opened for business in January 2021 months after the very first retail sports bets were placed by Michigan bettors. Today, the state’s sports betting industry offers awesome, competitive betting odds at many renowned sportsbooks such as Golden Nugget, BetMGM, DraftKings, PointsBet, and FOX Bet.

In the state of New Jersey, all sorts of sports betting activities are legal as well including online and mobile betting. In the Garden State, the online sports betting industry launched back in 2018 and soon became one of the most profitable industries of this kind in the states. In New Jersey, licensed sportsbooks exist at racetracks, casinos, and online including FanDuel, William Hill, BetMGM, Unibet, PointsBet, Wynn Bet, and DraftKings.

New Jersey March Sports Betting Revenues
March was an extremely successful month for both Michigan and New Jersey sportsbooks. According to reports released by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, the state’s gross gaming revenues increased by over 119.8% in March 2021 with a total gaming market revenue generating over USD 359 million. This is a major increase from market revenues of USD 163 million generated in March last year.

The sports betting industry in New Jersey enjoyed the most growth with sports revenues increasing by around 360% to reach USD 60.8 million, with millions in bets placed since opening day onwards. During the month, New Jersey bettors wagered over USD 859 million including USD 79 million in-person and USD 780 million across online sports betting sites. Sports handle for New Jersey sportsbooks this year reached over USD 2.5 billion while year-to-date NJ sports betting revenues reached over USD 189 million. In March, the state’s sport-by-sport breakdown:

  • Basketball with USD 1 billion worth of wagers
  • Football with USD 269 million worth of wagers
  • Baseball with USD 4.5 million worth of wagers
  • Other sports with USD 641 million worth of wagers
  • Parlays with USD 560 million worth of wagers

Michigan March Sports Betting Revenues
According to the Michigan Gaming Control Board and its official report, online sports betting activities in the state brought in over USD 32.3 million with a total sports handle of USD 359.5 million in March. Michigan bettors wagered a total of USD 383.7 million in March and as confirmed over USD 359 million came from online bettors. In the state, total revenues reached over USD 35.2 million with online sports betting sites generating over USD 32.2 million in gross betting revenues for March.

In March, Michigan online sports betting sites invested over USD 13.3 million in their bonuses and promotions, and since launching in January, they paid the state over USD 789,866-worth taxes on the 8.4% rate.

Unlike the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, the Michigan Gaming Control Board does not present sports handle by sports. However, the report shows that FanDuel captured the leading spot in March with over USD 107 million generated in wagers from Michigan bettors followed by BetMGM, and DraftKings.

  • FanDuel: USD 107 million from online bets
  • BetMGM: USD 92 million from online bets
  • DraftKings: USD 76 million from online bets
  • Penn: USD 39 million from online bets
  • PointsBet: USD 14 million from online bets
  • William Hill: USD 11 million from online bets

Other online sports betting operators in the state including FOX Bet, BetRivers, and TwinSpires took in USD 7 million, USD 4.8 million, and USD 3.2 million from their online bettors in March. When we compared the two sports betting markets, the New Jersey market remains one of the most profitable with a total sports handle of USD 859 million. In the same period Michigan sportsbooks toon in over USD 359 million from their bettors. Even though the state of Michigan has a bigger population than New Jersey, it is unlikely to see Michigan overtaking New Jersey in online betting stakes at least in the months to come.