All About Maryland Sports Betting Handle And Revenue

The experts at BetMaryland.com have assembled this guide to explain what we mean when we talk about Maryland sports betting revenue, also known as hold, compared to the sports wagering handle that the state reports each month.

There is an evolving sports betting market in Maryland with many online/mobile operators as well as a number of retail sports wagering options at brick-and-mortar casinos. There is also in-person betting at smaller physical facilities around the state. The number of online sportsbook operators and retail sports wagering facilities is expected to increase in the near future.

The handle is simply the total dollars wagered on sports in the state each month. In Maryland, bettors wager hundreds of millions of dollars each month. After a sports betting law was passed by the state’s General Assembly in 2021, legal, regulated sports betting began initially at retail sportsbooks in five casinos in December 2021. Online sports betting launched with seven operators in November 2022.

The revenue derived from online Maryland sportsbook apps is called hold – that refers to the amount that operators have left after they pay out winning bets. Taxable win is the hold minus promotional wagers and other specified deductions. Each sportsbook contributes 15% of its taxable win to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Fund, which supports public education programs.

Maryland Sports Betting, February vs. January

The normal post-NFL sports betting blues bit sports betting operators in Maryland during February, with a 23.1% month-over-month drop in total wagering handle. That was matched almost exactly by a 23.0% slump in wagering revenue and betting taxes.

In total, Maryland sports betting operators took in a total handle, or amount wagered, of $475,708,504 in February, down by more than $143 million in a month-over-month comparison with January’s $618,824,226.  while the Old-Line State’s sports betting revenue (or taxable win) wrapped up February at $42,334,492, down more than $12 million compared to January ($54,964,079).

Of that revenue total, $41,848,340 came from mobile sports betting wagers, down 22.3% from January ($53,892,757). The total sports betting tax bill (mobile and retail combined) of $6,350,174 during the second month of the calendar year was a 23.0% drop from January ($8,244,612), according to figures that Maryland Lottery and Gaming reported on March 10.

Of that tax total, mobile sports betting operators chipped in $6,277,251 to the state, down 22.3% from January ($8,083,914), putting a dour final note on the month for Maryland sportsbooks in the run up to the prosperity of March Madness.

February’s top mobile market share totals when broken down by market share were FanDuel Sportsbook, at $202,652,611, followed by DraftKings Sportsbook ($143,655,258), BetMGM ($40,455,665), Fanatics Sportsbook ($30,768,327) and Caesars Sportsbook ($23,326,122).

As for retail wagering, February’s casino operator handle broke down like this: MGM National Harbor (Oxon Hill) $4,339,143, Live! Casino & Hotel (Hanover) $3,229,167, Hollywood Casino Perryville $991,222, Ocean Downs Casino (Berlin) $886,736 and Horseshoe Casino Baltimore $828,500.

Maryland Mobile Sports Betting History