All About Kentucky Sports Betting Handle And Revenue

By Editorial Staff

@BetKYdotcom

April 29, 2025 04:25pm

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.

Several Kentucky 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 ESPN BET (Penn Interactive) is connected with Ellis Park.

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 opened one at Sandy’s Racing and Gaming in Ashland.

Handle figures released by the state following 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, March vs. February

Kentucky sports bettors celebrated March Madness in a big way. Data from the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation, reported on April 29, shows the Bluegrass State’s licensed sportsbooks accepted $293,176,264 in wagers during the month.

That handle represented an increase of 30.5% from February’s total of $224,733,399. In March, bettors wagered $284,916,145 through the eight approved online applications, up 30.1% from the $218,983,652 from February.

While the handle rose, sportsbooks reported a sharp decrease in revenue as Kentucky bettors cashed in on several favorites winning during the NCAA Basketball Tournament for both men and women. The $19,450,968 reported by operators fell 33.7% from the $29,335,475 they won in February. The mobile apps accounted for $18.866,115 of March’s haul, which was 34.7% less than the $28,877,213 they won in the previous month.

As revenues fell, so did Kentucky’s share. The state received $2,740,108 in sports betting taxes for March, down 34% from the $4,152,286 the books paid in February. Taxes from mobile operators fell by 34.7% from $4,115,598 in February to $2,687,402 last month.

DraftKings remains Kentucky’s top online sports betting app as the Boston-based operator took $104,719,582 in wagers during March. FanDuel Kentucky Sportsbook finished second with a handle of $98,627,774. After them, bet365 accepted $26,050,146 in wagers, followed by BetMGM’s $16,238,044 and $13,997,886 for Fanatics.

Churchill Downs topped the retail establishments with a handle of $2,851,646, followed by the Red Mile’s $1,642,932, Kentucky Downs’ $1,091,164, Turfway Park’s $946,625 and Ellis Park’s $543,316.

Kentucky Mobile Sports Betting History