According to data released by the Michigan Gaming Control Board, sports betting appears to be declining in popularity. The state saw fewer people wager for their favourite teams this month than they did last month, and there have been two consecutive months of declines, with May being 5% lower than April’s numbers and March seeing an even larger percentage decrease, owing primarily to the excitement surrounding NCAA basketball during its championship tournament, which took place earlier in the month.
“Sportsbooks have been hit by the seasonality of sports betting and struggling local teams,” said Jessica Welman, a PlayMichigan.com analyst. It appears that they will have to wait until the end of the summer to see significant growth again.”
Michigan’s online casinos and poker experienced slightly better numbers at the end of May, reporting a smaller decline (down 2 percent from April).
In May, online casinos and poker rooms earned $94.9 million, nearly becoming the state’s first $100 million revenue month, and reported similar incomings to the previous month. In fact, online casino winnings averaged more than $3 million per day this past May! That equates to an adjusted gross receipts total of just under 90 million for that time period, with earnings averaging around 88-89 million per week.
“Online casinos have become a powerhouse generator not only here, but nationwide,” Welman added. These sites are steadily increasing their monthly incomes by huge margins, despite the fact that many other states’ retail gambling establishments continue to lose money or have stagnant revenues due to poor betting options.