DraftKings leads way as Massachusetts online sportsbooks top $550m in October handle

October marked another strong month for online sportsbooks in Massachusetts and specifically DraftKings, which became the first operator to eclipse $300m in monthly handle since the Bay State launched mobile betting in March this year.

In total, Massachusetts’ eight online operators combined to accept $555.8m in cumulative wagers according to new data from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC), which is just shy of the state record of $566.2m established in April.

The October handle figure represented an 11.2% month-over-month (MOM) increase, with DraftKings accounting for more than half of the market.

Aggregate revenue for the month amounted to $59.5m, an 18.5% MoM uptick from the $50.2m generated in September. 

Operators held a solid 10.7% of wagers in October, resulting in $11.6m in tax payments back to the state.

Boston-headquarteredDraftKings maintained its stranglehold on the market, handling just under 55% of all wagers while totaling $34.3m in revenue. 

FanDuel continued to hold firm on the second spot with $155.6m in handle and $15.9m in revenue, while BetMGM rounded out the top three at $35m and $4.4m, respectively.

Caesars ($19.1m handle, $1.2m revenue) was next on the list, with relative newcomer Fanatics ($13.6m handle, $1.3m revenue) making up some ground to effectively draw even with incumbents WynnBET and Penn Sports Interactive.

Penn, which notably transitioned away from former partner Barstool Sports, formally launched ESPN Bet in partnership with ESPN on November 14. This means that the first ESPN Bet numbers will be included as part of the next MGC monthly report. Link to ESPN story

Massachusetts continues to be a mobile-first state, with online betting accounting for 97.2% of all wagers and 98.3% of revenue in October. The Bay State’s three retail sportsbooks combined to generate $16m in handle and just over $1m in revenue for the month.