Indiana, Iowa See Historic November Sports Betting Figures

• Indiana set new monthly sports betting handle and revenue records in November – this marks the third consecutive month Indiana has set a new monthly handle record.
• Iowa shattered its monthly sports betting revenue record by more than $6 million; Iowa also enjoyed a 2.3% increase in monthly handle, with the $287.2 million a monthly record as well.

INDIANAPOLIS – While a good portion of the country now hosts legalized and regulated sports betting industries to some extent, two mid-western states, in particular, have broken sports betting records in November – Indiana and Iowa.

Indiana Has Another Historic Month

For the third consecutive month, Indiana sports betting set a new record for monthly handle with more than $463 million in wagers placed.

According to the Indiana Gaming Commission’s monthly report,  a total of $463.7 million in wagers were placed on sports in Indiana in November 2021, an 84.4% increase from November 2020’s handle, resulting in $47.7 million in revenue – also a monthly record.

November’s record handle edged out October’s handle of $461.1 million by 0.6%.

$15.5 million in sports wagers were placed in Indiana, on average, per day in November.

The increase in handle from October to November is even more impressive when considering that October’s figures were bolstered by five weekends featuring full college football and NFL betting slates.

Jake Garza, an analyst studying Indiana’s gaming industry, said of the potential for even higher handle and revenue figures in the coming months:

“Basketball betting, both college and professional, is more important in Indiana than almost every other legal sports betting market in the U.S. Indiana’s best months are typically when college basketball and the NBA are in full stride, and the NFL is still in play. And with Purdue among the nation’s best and Indiana off to a good start, bettors are particularly incentivized this year to bet on college basketball,” Garza said.

Iowa Shatters Monthly Revenue Record

Indiana is not the only mid-western state breaking monthly legal sports betting handle and revenue records, however, as Iowa also enjoyed a historic November.

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission reported a record-breaking $19.7 million in sports betting revenue in November. This figure easily surpassed the previous record – set in March of this year – of $13.4 million, and marked just the third time Iowa sportsbooks have seen revenue numbers in the eight figures.

The strong November brought the state’s yearly total revenue over $100 million, more than twice Iowa’s 2020 yearly revenue figure of $41 million.

Iowa sportsbooks also saw a 2.3% increase in handle in November, a record $287.2 million total handle for the month. If Iowa breaks $225 million in handle during December, they will surpass the $2 billion yearly handle mark for the first time.

Another good sign for Iowa’s sports betting operators is the 6.87% hold they have reported so far in 2021. While the 6.87% figure is still shy of the 7% mark most sportsbooks aim for, Iowa suffered very low hold rates in September and October, with lower than 3% rates in both months.

News tags: College Basketball | College Football | Indiana | Indiana Gaming Commission | Indiana Hoosiers | Iowa | Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission | Jake Garza | NBA | NFL | Purdue Boilermakers