Pennsylvania became the fifth state in the post-PASPA era to surpass $30 billion in sports betting handle Tuesday when its Gaming Control Board reported $591.9 million worth of wagers for May.

The Keystone State joined neighbors New Jersey and New York, as well as Nevada and Illinois, in that select group after 67 months of commercial wagering. May’s handle represented a 19.4% increase year-over-year and was down only 8.4% from April’s $646.1 million.

The state’s 18 retail sportsbooks and 11 mobile books combined for $61.7 million in gross sports betting revenue, resulting in a 10.4% hold. Winnings were up 7.2% from last year with the all-time total clearing $2.5 billion. Revenue also edged 4.5% higher compared to April, as May’s hold was nearly 1.3 percentage points higher.

The state collected $15 million in tax revenue from $44.2 million in adjusted gross revenue after promotions and the federal excise tax were deducted. The $17.5 million in promotional credits and bonuses were up 6.3% compared to last May as the year-to-date spend among mobile operators surpassed $100 million.

The $232.4 million in AGR for 2024 is up 10% from last year, and the $79 million in tax revenue is running $7.2 million ahead of the first five months of 2023.

1 NEW JERSEY $51.7B
2 NEW YORK ~$45.4B
3 Nevada $40.6B
4 Illinois $35B
5 PENN. $30.1B
6 Colorado $18.0B
7 Arizona $17.1B
8 INDIANA ~$17B
9 Virginia $16.1B
10 MICHIGAN $16B#SportsBettingX #GamblingX

— Chris Altruda (@AlTruda73) June 18, 2024

Despite being the runaway leader in market share among Pennsylvania’s sports betting apps at more than 44% this year, FanDuel is hardly standing pat. The mobile juggernaut accounted for 49% of the state’s promotional spend with $8.5 million, contributing to a $243 million handle — up 26.3% from May 2023.

FanDuel notched a 12.8% hold in reaping $31.2 million in gross revenue, the third consecutive month it topped $30 million. It also topped $1.1 billion in all-time winnings while nudging its win rate to 9.9%.

DraftKings spent nearly half as much as FanDuel when it came to promotions at $4.2 million, and its $163.3 million worth of wagers represented a 23.7% year-over-year increase. It totaled $15.1 million in gross revenue, good for a 9.2% win rate. DraftKings also cleared $500 million in all-time Keystone State winnings.

BetMGM grabbed the final podium spots for revenue and handle, earning $3.3 million from $36.3 million in handle to post a hold just shy of 9%. Its $1.1 million in promotional spend was its lightest since last August.

ESPN BET topped $3 million in gross revenue for the fourth straight month, reaching $3.1 million thanks to a year-best 9.9% win rate. Its outlay of just over $1 million in credits and bonuses in May was its lightest since succeeding Barstool Sportsbook in the middle of last November, but the $8.4 million spend this year is still 56.5% of its $14.9 million in gross winnings.

BetRivers completed the top five for mobile betting when combining its Pittsburgh and Philadelphia-based tethers, earning $2.5 million in revenue from $30.9 million in handle. The bulk of the action continues to originate in Pittsburgh, where that licensee recorded an 8.2% hold in keeping $1.8 million of the $22.3 million wagered.

Fanatics Sportsbook had the second-highest hold among mobile operators at 11.2%, claiming $2.1 million of the $18.6 million in handle. When combining numbers with predecessor PointsBet from January, the $8.6 million in year-to-date revenue is $260,829 shy of matching 2023’s full-year total of $8.8 million.

BetPARX narrowly missed reaching seven figures for the first time since January, finishing $38,700 shy despite a hold of just under 10%. The $9.6 million handle was its first under $10 million since last June.

Betfred was the only operator to take a loss in May, as bettors added $30,487 on top of the $571,800 wagered. It was Betfred’s second losing month this year after finishing $25,274 in the red for February.

The state’s brick-and-mortar venues had a milestone of their own for May, surpassing $2.5 billion in all-time handle after accepting $34.9 million worth of wagers.

That was down 1.3% compared to last year, but with the 7.4% hold sitting four percentage points lower, revenue plunged 35.9% to $2.6 million.

Hollywood Morgantown absorbed its second-biggest monthly loss at $89,361, trailing only the $186,517 loss to end 2023. Live! Casino in Philadelphia nearly matched that, as bettors came out $86,091 ahead in their first winning month versus the house since May 2022.

Rivers Casino’s two venues combined for $833,923 in winnings, with the Philadelphia location nearly erasing all of its $644,833 loss from April with $602,017 in May gains. Parx Casino was a close second at $580,641 thanks to a 9.1% hold from $6.4 million in handle.