The Massachusetts Gaming Commission has reported strong revenue figures for the first month of 2025.
Total taxable gaming revenue for January reached $192.32 million, of which $46.63 million was contributed to The Commonwealth State in taxes.
Growth in Massachusetts was primarily driven by online sports betting. However, MA will remain one of the most challenging states for those hoping to see crypto sportsbooks rise to prominence.
DraftKings & FanDuel Dominate Massachusetts Betting
Sports betting revenue hit a record high, with $94.4 million taxable revenue in January. This is a yearly rise of 32.8 percent on January 2024’s $71.1 million and comfortably eclipses the previous revenue record, $75.4 million, set in September 2024.
Interestingly, the total handle decreased from 3.26 percent from December’s record high. December saw $788.3 million in wagers, with just $762.6 million in January. The hold percentage in January reached 12.38 percent, compared to December’s 7.29 percent.
The favorable results for sportsbook operators in January led to a huge 64.17 percent in taxable revenue, rising from $57.5 million in December.
Most users engaged in online sports betting, which took 98.5 percent of all wagers. Online and mobile wagering reached $751.4 million, while retail betting generated just $11.1 million.
DraftKings cemented its place at the top of the Massachusetts pile on an operator-by-operator basis. The gambling giant saw a 25.82 percent increase in handle month over month, reaching $377.14 million in handle and $51.78 million in taxable revenue.
This gave DraftKings over half of the MA market by handle market share. Additionally, the company achieved an above-average hold of 13.7 percent.
Flutter-owned FanDuel secured second place, despite a 0.72 percent decline in handle. The operator achieved 28.9 percent market share by wagers placed.
BetMGM achieved 0.3 percent handle growth, with Fanatics, ESPN Bet, Caesars, and Bally Bet all seeing lower wagered amounts for the month of January.
Crypto Faces Political Resistance in Massachusetts Despite Betting Boom
Despite strong revenue growth in online sports betting, the current political climate in Massachusetts does not lend itself to crypto sportsbook expansion. President Trump’s pro-crypto stance is not one echoed in MA.
Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, the most high-profile crypto critic in US politics retained her Senate seat by a landslide victory over pro-XPR Republican John Deaton last year.
Deaton has a background as a crypto lawyer and received $2 million in funding from the Gemini co-founders as well as Ripple. The two candidates had previously exchanged loaded words in Senate debates, with Deaton accusing Warren of building an “anti-crypto army.”
Warren claimed she is “fine” with people who want to buy and sell cryptocurrencies but is keen for them to ensure that the crypto industry adheres to the stringent rules and regulations leveraged on banks and stockbrokers.
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