Michigan's Gross Sports Betting Revenue in September Jumps 27% YoY to $56.3M

The Michigan Gaming Control Board reported $56.3 million in gross sports betting revenue for September on Thursday as operators eked out a double-digit hold for the 12th consecutive month.

Sportsbook winnings rose 26.9% from last year, with the 10.1% win rate up 1.85 percentage points from 2025. Handle ticked up 3.6% to $557.2 million as operators maintained typical promotional outlay coinciding with the start of the NFL and college football seasons.

The state was able to levy taxes on $25.7 million in adjusted gross revenue, redirecting nearly $1.9 million to its coffers. Despite being one of the first states to launch sports wagering in 2020, Michigan has long been operator-friendly, with low state tax rates and the ability to carry over monthly losses in perpetuity.

That contributed to the Wolverine State needing six-plus years to finally cross the $100 million threshold for total state tax revenue with September’s figure. The city of Detroit has totaled $37.2 million in receipts all-time after collecting another $548,500.

Promotional Offers Aplenty

The $30.6 million in reported deductions for September was an increase of less than 1% from last year, but six of Michigan’s 13 mobile sportsbooks had promotional outlays reaching seven figures. As the Detroit Tigers faded from the American League playoff chase, attention quickly turned to the gridiron, where the Detroit Lions were tipped to be competitive in the NFC North, and Michigan had its third coach in four seasons with Kyle Whittingham at the helm.

First-year operators bet365 and Hard Rock helped keep the overall figure flat. Bet365 reported just over $6 million in deductions for September, keeping in line with an ultra-aggressive push to land customers since launching in April.

In terms of performance, the England-based sportsbook posted an impressive 15.5% hold, retaining $4.7 million of its $30.1 million handle, while the minus-$1.3 million AGR marked the fourth time in six months bet365 finished in the red. It currently has a minus-$28.6 million AGR overall, largely due to massive outlays from its spring launch.

This is also Hard Rock’s first fall in Michigan, and while its promotional push wasn't on the same scale as bet365, the $2.9 million in reported deductions for September trailed only its $6.2 million outlay at launch last December. Like its rookie counterpart, Hard Rock posted a hold of over 15%, taking $3.1 million in gross winnings from nearly $20 million in accepted wagers. Hard Rock did have a small pile of taxable winnings, though, with AGR totaling $231,000.

Despite notably cutting back on their respective spending from last year, FanDuel and DraftKings remained 1-2. FanDuel's $8.5 million outlay fell 28.8%, and DraftKings' $7.5 million was 26.3% lower. Among operators with a seven-figure deduction, Fanatics had the sharpest decline, down 52.2% to $1.3 million.

FanDuel Keeps the Top Spot but a Notable Streak Ends

FanDuel doubled the top operator in handle and gross revenue, but its 17-month streak of double-digit hold ended. The mobile titan totaled $16.7 million in winnings on an $186.3 million handle, for a 9% hold, its first below 10% since it was held to 7.9% in March 2025. Revenue slacked 8.3% despite a 3.2% bump in wagering.

In contrast, revenue for eternal rival DraftKings surged 33.8% to $14.2 million as handle slumped 7.2% to $153.7 million. DraftKings' 9.3% win rate was more than 2.8 percentage points higher than in 2025. Its $6.7 million AGR was almost a 15-fold increase from the $462,500 reported a year ago.

BetMGM was an easy third in revenue and did what FanDuel couldn't: extend its streak of double-digit holds to 18 months. It posted a 14%+ win rate, keeping $7.9 million of its $56.6 million handle as revenue rose 16.3%.

Fanatics’ pullback on promotional offers did not affect action much, as handle improved 7.2% to $48.9 million. A stronger 9.6% hold, however, let revenue outpace that growth, rising 42% to $4.7 million. Taxable winnings, meanwhile, improved more than six-fold to $3.3 million.

Caesars Sportsbook posted a modest 2.8% increase in gross winnings to $1.2 million, but September marked its third consecutive month with a sub-6% hold, finishing with a 5.8% win rate on $21.3 million in handle. It has not posted a 9% or higher hold since reaching 10.2% in September 2023