Halfway through 2024, Ohio’s sports betting industry hasn’t slowed

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Year-over-year, Ohioans appetite for betting in sports seems to be growing.

Just over $4.1 billion was bet on sports in Ohio through June, up from $3.8 billion at this same time in 2023, according to compiled data from the Ohio Casino Control and Ohio Lottery commissions.

Meanwhile the sports-betting companies have reported $436 million in revenue through six months, down from $540 million in 2023. This is the money they kept after paying out winnings and voided wagers.

In June, the most recent data available, Ohioans placed $530 million in bets. This is up from $348 million bet in June 2023. Betting companies reported $51 million revenue in June, up from $32.6 million last year.

Sports-betting was first legalized on Jan. 1, 2023. January last year saw $1.1 billion in bets, much of it from lots of pent-up demand and promotions. Otherwise, each month in 2024 has seen year-over-year gains except for January.

Most of these bets go to mobile apps, which have accounted for $4 billion of bets and $429 million in revenue. Apps account for 97% of the bets and 98% of all revenue.

Physical betting lounges took in just over $101 million of bets and reported $7 million in revenue. While the Ohio Lottery’s betting kiosks account for just $6 million of bets, and just under $600,000 in revenue.

Sports gambling revenue is taxed at 20%. The state will get about $87 million in tax revenue from 2024′s betting so far.

Sean McDonnell is the business reporter for cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer. You can reach him at smcdonnell@cleveland.com.