In July, Indiana’s sports betting handle predictably declined.

Throughout the month, the state received $194 million in wagers, which was a decrease from June’s handle of $246 million.

This type of drop is extremely typical in the summer. The trend might persist until the return of the football season.

Even with the downturn, the month remained significant for the overall sports betting industry in Indiana.

Sports betting handle in Indiana for July 2021

In July, Indiana generated a handle of $194 million, which resulted in more than $1.6 million in taxes and over $17 million in revenue for the sportsbooks.

It’s not surprising that nearly 90% of the state’s betting handle was generated through online sports betting. DraftKings, as usual, dominated the scene with over $60 million in bets.

Licensee	Online Brand(s)	Total Handle	Online Handle	Retail Handle	Revenue	State Tax
Ameristar East Chicago	DraftKings | theScore Bet	$66,630,479	$63,587,961	$3,042,519	$5,167,421	$490,923
Blue Chip	FanDuel	$54,812,502	$54,343,643	$468,859	$5,322,994	$505,684
Belterra	BetMGM | Betway	$25,879,817	$25,594,936	$284,882	$2,213,978	$210,337
Hollywood Lawrenceburg	PointsBet | Barstool	$20,048,561	$14,155,587	$5,892,974	$2,418,172	$229,748
Tropicana Evansville	William Hill	$8,515,185	$7,908,956	$606,230	$241,766	$30,476
French Lick	BetRivers	$7,183,252	$6,861,126	$322,126	$688,570	$65,426
Horseshoe Hammond	Caesars | Unibet	$3,240,547	$852,852	$2,387,695	$243,086	$34,956
Indiana Grand		$2,981,025	$0	$2,981,025	$299,775	$28,494
Harrah’s Hoosier Park		$2,748,622	$0	$2,748,622	$340,030	$32,236
Caesars Southern Indiana		$1,125,218	$0	$1,125,218	$119,243	$14,303
Rising Star	TwinSpires | WynnBet	$1,327,460	$1,274,580	$52,880	$170,001	$15,468
Total		$194,492,669	$174,579,640	$19,913,029	$17,225,036	$1,658,052

Sports betting handle in Indiana decreases

Battling the summer blues is a widespread challenge in every sports betting market across the nation.

Take Iowa for example.

In June, Iowa received over $111 million in sports bets. However, this figure fell by approximately 20% to $88 million in July.

Last month, Indiana experienced a similar decrease of approximately 21%.

Baseball season is fully underway, however, it doesn’t draw large crowds compared to NFL betting. The situation is similar with betting on the Olympics.

The exact amount of money that Hoosiers wagered on the Olympics in July is unknown, as the gaming commission’s monthly reports do not include a separate section for these events. Most Olympic events are classified under the “Other” category in these reports.

Here’s a brief overview of the most bet on sports during July:

• Football: $2.2 million
• Basketball: $26.7 million
• Baseball: $63.5 million
• Parlay: $45.3 million
• Other: $53.8 million

The significant shift here is that basketball is no longer the premier sport. It used to be Indiana’s most bet on sport each month throughout 2021.

Last month, Hoosiers could bet on the NBA Finals, but baseball ultimately claimed the top spot in betting in July.

Betting in Indiana hits $4 billion milestone

The $194 million handle in July allowed Indiana’s market to surpass a significant milestone.

Since the commencement of betting in September 2019, Hoosiers have officially bet over $4 billion on sports.

This translates to sports betting companies earning over $300 million in lifetime revenue.

Indiana took until July 2020 to reach its first billion. Precisely a year later, the state managed to surpass the $4 billion mark.

To put it differently, gamblers in Indiana have wagered more than $3 billion on sports in the past year alone. This remarkable rate underscores the passion Hoosiers have for sports betting.

If the pandemic hadn’t brought sports to a standstill last year, Indiana would have achieved this milestone much earlier.

Now that football season is imminent, the state’s market should be poised for a surge.

NFL betting returns

The NFL season isn’t quite upon us yet, but preseason activities will kick off this week.

Fans hoping to place a bet on the Colts will welcome this news.

Indy is scheduled to play three preseason games in August, all of which fans are allowed to bet on.

The state’s sportsbooks are pleased to accept the additional preseason boost even though the first regular season game for the Colts isn’t until September 12.

The return of football, which is the most favored sport for gambling across the US, could potentially rejuvenate sports betting markets nationwide.

The football calendar may position Indiana to surpass its highest ever monthly betting record later this year. The existing record is held by January 2021 with a handle of $348 million.

It won’t be easy to surpass that number, but the market in Indiana is still expanding.

New sports betting applications are still intending to be introduced in the state, with new participants joining the excitement each month.

Add the equivalent of a mountain of football bets and Indiana could be looking at a record-breaking fall.