Illinois is staking claim as the U.S.’s second-biggest sports betting market in April. A bit late in reporting their data, Illinois’ sports betting numbers are amazing, beating New Jersey out of second place in recording the second-highest betting handle for the month. Find out how Illinois sportsbooks fared in April in our latest gambling report.
The Illinois Gaming Board’s latest monthly data shows that the Land of Lincoln generated $92 million of adjusted revenue on a handle of $1.1 billion, edging New Jersey ($1.04 billion) for second place behind New York for the month. April was quite a busy month for US sports. According to SportsBettingSolutionAsia.com, their bookies have reported seeing better numbers in April this year, compared to numbers from the same month last year. Will it be the same for Illinois?
Illinois Sportsbooks: Numbers for April
April’s handle was the sixth-highest amount wagered all-time in Illinois. It marked the eighth consecutive $1 billion month-handle streak that the state’s sportsbooks are enjoying. The April handle was up 23% year-over-year but down 12% month-over-month. The month-on-month decline is expected during this period. But the year-on-year increase is a good indicator that the local market continues to grow.
Online and retail sportsbooks combined for an 8.3% hold, mainly because of the 8.4% from mobile on a handle of $1.07 billion. Meanwhile, brick-and-mortar operators record 2.7% on a handle of $31.8 million. Revenue took a more modest climb of 2.7% compared to April 2023 while profits fell 7.5% from March. Year-to-date sports betting revenue has now surpassed $400 million in the state. You too, can find out more about your sportsbook’s trends with the help of this pay per head sportsbook software.
Where Illinois Residents Bet On
In another basketball-heavy month that saw the NCAA wrap up its men’s and women’s tournaments and the Chicago Bulls end their regular season outside of the playoff picture, hoops accounted for $13.7 million of revenue. The numbers could have been higher if the Bulls had made the playoffs, but NBA betting remains to be one of the most popular leagues people bet on during this season.
Baseball brought in $6.5 million while tennis sportsbooks nearly $5.2 million to round out the top three sports for April. As for wagers, Parlays were the big money maker, accounting for 68.2% of the monthly revenue for sportsbooks. If you want to be able to offer a large variety of sports for your players to bet on, read these pay per head reviews to find a provider for your bookie software.
Illinois Sports Betting Taxes to Change Soon
Illinois filled its coffers with $13.8 million in April, one of the last remaining months of the state’s 15% tax rate on sports betting operators. A new progressive rate was signed into the 2025 state budget by Gov. J.B. Pritzker earlier this month and is set to begin July 1.
Under the new law, sportsbooks will pay out a minimum of 20% of their adjusted revenue. Depending on how much they bring in, the scale goes as high as 40%. This will be one of the highest tax rates on sports betting across the country.
