Online Sports Betting in Michigan – New Leader on the Horizon
Posted: March 30, 2021
Updated: March 30, 2021
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Online sports betting in Michigan is legal since January 2021
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The gambling-numbers are unexpectedly high
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Will it stay this way in the future?
The latest changes in the sports betting regulations of Michigan are already starting to show in the gambling business. So other states, like Nevada, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey – who are all strong on the field – should start to brace themselves. Michigan’s online sports betting market is slowly, but surely rising from day to day!
The Wolverine State has not been the favorite spot of gamblers and online gambling sites in the US. But since they launched retail sports betting in March last year, and they gave a green light to online betting in January 2021, it is about to change. The extent of online betting activity exceeded the expectations. Some even say that online sports betting in Michigan is so big that it has already transformed into one of the largest gaming markets in the United States. Which a pretty honored place to be!
The start of online sports betting in Michigan
This year is unique for the Wolverine State in terms of online wagering. Since they made online sports betting legal in January, they saw an amazing hit in the market. The Michigan Gaming Control Board released data in February about their results so far, and they were better than anyone expected them to be. Operators reported that under only 10 days of legal online sports betting, they handled 115,2 million dollars. With this achievement, they were just behind Tennessee. A state that set an opening-month record with over 131 million dollars back in November 2020. However, right now we are talking about 10 days only. Ever since then, almost two months have passed, so it is worth looking at the numbers now.
Where are we standing today?
Matt Schoch, an analyst for PlayMichigan.com spoke up about the popularity of online wagering in Michigan. For SBC Americas he said: “It is difficult to imagine how an online debut could have gone any better.” He added: “It took less than 40 days to transform Michigan into one of the largest U.S. gaming markets.” And you can bet he is right! Here are the numbers to prove that. The online sportsbooks of Michigan handled more than 300 million dollars throughout February! It was the first full month of the legal operation. With this, until the end of February, the total lifetime handle of operators in Michigan reaches 417 million dollars. This amount brought 45 million dollars in revenue and 2.2 million dollars in tax for the state.
So, this is good news to the state, since they have an increased tax income. It is also good for wagers because they have broader possibilities when it comes to gambling. It is also good for the 12 online sportsbook sites in the US, which are already present in the market of Michigan. Though some of the favorite sportsbooks of online wagers, like GTBets, are not there yet. But as always, it is just a matter of time!
What does the future hold?
As you can see from the data above, the Wolverine State is ahead of a really nice future in online sports wagering. If the growth keeps moving forward like this, both the state and the operators can expect a lot from the market in the next couple of months and years. However, the growth might not continue as it did so far. And why? Maybe, the present’s huge interest might only be because of the charm of novelty. So, after most wagers gratify their needs, they might cut their gambling-related spending back. Another spokesperson from PlayMichigan.com, called Jessica Welman discussed the possibilities of this, and she sees it coming. “Michigan has long had the potential to be a top-five market, but its rapid ascent shows just how much pent-up demand was unleashed.”
So, a little setback is still on the table for the business, but it is just like that. Operators and online sportsbooks in the US, such as GTBets are used to the practice.
You can discover more about GTBets here.