It didn’t take long for online sports betting to become a hit in Michigan. Over the first 10 days of its launch, Michiganders wagered over $115.2 million right out of the gate.
The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) announced the figure on Wednesday in a full report, detailing the state’s success in January.
Despite only going live as of January 22, Michigan sports betting has proven to be popular. In fact, the $115.2 million is the second-highest sports betting amount handled in a state during its opening month. Tennessee has the current record of $131.4 million back in November 2020.
The main difference there is that Tennessee launched on November 1, meaning they had the whole month to get to that number.
On the other hand, $42.7 million in gross receipts was reported for the 10-day period. Out of the total, $29.4 million of that came from online gambling. The other $13.3 million came from online sports betting.
It’s important to take into account that sports betting went live in Michigan the week before Super Bowl 55. If that’s the type of influence a major sporting event can have, it’ll be interesting to see how things look with the NCAA’s March Madness Tournament next month.
In the meantime, it’ll be interesting to see what happens throughout the rest of February.
Communities Benefit from Online Gambling, Sports Betting
While online gambling and sports betting may not be for everyone, it has been helping Michigan communities since going live.
According to the MGCB, Michigan saw around $4.4 million in taxes and payments from internet gaming and sports betting operators during the 10-day period in January. The breakdown of that number looks like this:
- Internet gaming: $4.3 million
- Online sports betting: $111,696
Richard S. Kalm, the executive director of the MCGB, said that he’s happy with the initial launch so far.
“Internet gaming operators are off to a good start in Michigan,” said Kalm in the MCGB’s report. “The taxes and payments from online gaming will provide funding for K-12 students, the city of Detroit and Michigan tribal communities.”
Michigan receives 70 percent of the total tax from commercial operators of online gaming and 80 percent of payment from tribal casinos.
When it comes to online sports betting, that breakdown looks a bit different:
- Commercial operators: 70 percent of the 8.4 percent tax to Michigan, plus 30 per cent to Detroit.
- Tribal operators: 8.4 percent payment on gross sports betting receipts to Michigan.
Michigan Sports Betting Expected to Grow
Michigan’s initial success with internet gaming and sports betting is encouraging. Currently, there are around a dozen regulated sportsbooks in the state since the launch of online gambling in January.
That number is expected to grow this year with more partnerships expected to be going live soon.
The FireKeepers Casino and Soaring Eagle Casino are expected to launch online sportsbook partnerships sometime in March, although no exact date has been announced.
