All About Kentucky Sports Betting Handle And Revenue
BetKentucky.com is your go-to destination for all things related to Kentucky sports betting, and as such, we’ve developed this guide to explain terms such as handle, revenue and tax collections.
Sports betting began in the Bluegrass State in September 2023. State officials chose a gradual launch, allowing brick-and-mortar sportsbooks to start first on Sept. 7, 2023. Online operators received the green light three weeks later.
As of November 2023, seven of Kentucky’s nine licensed racetracks have licenses to serve as sports wagering operators. That allows them to host sportsbooks at their racing venues and their historical horse racing satellite facilities. Those tracks may also partner with up to three online sports betting operators.
Currently, there are eight licensed online sports betting operators in the state; they often offer Kentucky betting promos. Bet365 and BetMGM have partnered with Sandy’s Racing and Gaming. Caesars Sportsbook is connected to The Red Mile. Circa Sports and DraftKings have partnerships with Cumberland Run. Fanatics is partnered with Oak Grove Racing and Gaming. FanDuel is licensed through Turfway Park, and Barstool Sportsbook (soon to be ESPN BET) is connected with Ellis Park. Of those, all but Circa have officially started taking bets in Kentucky.
Brick-and-mortar sportsbooks have opened at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ellis Park in Henderson, Oak Grove and Turfway Park in Florence – all of which operate on the Kambi platform. Caesars has a retail book at The Red Mile in Lexington. DraftKings has sportsbooks at Cumberland Run in Corbin and The Mint Williamsburg, while BetMGM recently opened one at Sandy’s Racing and Gaming in Ashland.
Through the initial handle figures released by the administration of Gov. Andy Beshear, the state is following in the path of most other markets that have both online and retail options – that is, the licensed online Kentucky sports betting apps are the preferred choice by most sports bettors in the state.
Kentucky Sports Betting, December vs. November
Kentucky Sports Betting Handle and Revenue: December 2023
Kentucky online sports betting operators reported handles of $272.5 million for November and $255.3 million for December, according to data released by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission on Wednesday. Those figures are down slightly from the $279.8 million the seven sportsbooks took in October.
As was the case in other states, November was not the best month for Kentucky operators, as they reported revenues of just $21.6 million. While the handle dropped in December, the licensed operators claimed more, earning $32 million in revenue. For both months, online operators generated more than $7.5 million in state taxes.
DraftKings and FanDuel stand clear among the field. FanDuel edged DraftKings in handle for November by less than $50,000 ($102 million to $101.9 million), but DraftKings took more wagers in December, $98.5 million to $93 million.
ESPN BET, which went live in mid-November, gained significant ground. Its November handle was $17.6 million, which includes two weeks of wagering for Barstool Sportsbook. It saw traffic rise in December to $19 million. Comparatively, Barstool reported a Kentucky online sports betting handle of $2.6 million in October.
Next in line was bet365. The British-based operator reported handles of $18.2 million and $15.8 million for November and December, respectively. Caesars took wagers of $15 million and $14.1 million.
BetMGM’s betting traffic for the months totaled $12.4 million and $9.3 million, while Fanatics’ $5.6 million December handle was up slightly from its $5.5 million in the previous month.
Kentucky sports bettors clearly prefer to make their wagers online. The state’s retail sportsbooks reported handles of $10 million in November and $8.8 million in December. The brick-and-mortar outlets won $1.3 million over that span, which generated just less than $130,000 in state taxes.month.
Kentucky Mobile Sports Betting History
Kentucky Sports Betting Handle and Revenue FAQs
Sports betting with legal, regulated operators began in Kentucky on Sept. 7, 2023, with brick-and-mortar sportsbooks at racetracks and historical horse racing gaming halls. Online sports betting started on Sept. 28, 2023.
House Bill 551, which Kentucky lawmakers passed in March, established a two-tier tax system. The state taxes adjusted gross revenues from brick-and-mortar sportsbooks at 9.75%, and it taxes AGR from online apps at 14.25%.
Kentucky should be releasing its sports betting tax and revenue figures once a month. According to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, tax payments are due from operators by the 20th of the ensuing month (i.e., taxes for November are due by Dec. 20).
Kentucky’s law requires the tax revenue to first cover the administrative costs of regulating sports betting statewide. After that, nearly all the remaining funds will go toward the state’s public pension fund, except 2.5%, which will go to the newly created Kentucky problem gambling assistance fund.
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission oversees both retail and online sports betting in the state.
Mobile sports betting handle is the money wagered on sporting events by people using online devices, such as desktops, laptops or mobile phones.
Handle is the amount bet within a state each month on sports – only people physically located within a state can use legal, regulated sportsbooks to place bets. Revenue is the money left after operators pay out winnings to bettors.
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