The state’s most recent financial gaming results illustrate how strong Michigan online casinos can be within the framework of a jurisdiction’s gambling offerings.
In March, Michigan gambling’s 14 internet gaming and sports betting operators — representing three commercial casinos in Detroit and 11 Tribal gaming operations elsewhere in the state — reported a combined $162.15 million in total gross receipts. The March internet receipts were an increase of 11.6% compared with February results.
The combined total internet gaming and internet sports adjusted gross receipts were $133.24 million. That included $118.58 million from internet casino gaming and $14.66 million from Michigan sports betting.
In accounting for gaming operator revenues, Michigan makes a distinction between gross receipts and adjusted gross receipts.
Adjusted gross receipts are gross receipts minus a deduction equal to the amount of free play provided and wagered by participants as an incentive to place bets. There’s a sliding scale that eventually sunsets the deduction. For Years 1-3, the deduction is not to exceed 10% of gross receipts; for Year 4, it’s not to exceed 6% of gross receipts; for Year 5, it’s not to exceed 4% of gross receipts, and starting in Year 6, there’s no deduction.
A number of jurisdictions, make a similar allowance in figuring taxable revenue.
Michigan Sports Betting, March vs. February
| Total handle | Mobile handle | Revenue (GGR) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | $479.968M | $451.613M | $16.592M |
| February | $423.768M | $398.395M | Minus-$4.822M |
| Change | Up 13.3% | Up 13.4% | ------ |
iCasino Big Tax Contributor
The operators submitted $24.7 million in taxes and payments to the state of Michigan during March including: from internet gaming, taxes and fees of $23.9 million, and from internet sports betting, taxes and fees of $805,334.
Meanwhile, the three Detroit casinos reported paying the City of Detroit $7 million in wagering taxes and municipal services fees during March.
Compared to the same month in 2021, internet gaming adjusted gross receipts rose 33.7%, and internet sports betting adjusted gross receipts fell 22.8%.
Sports Betting Rebounds from February
Looking more broadly at sports wagering for March, the total sports betting handle was nearly $480 million, up 13.3% from February (almost $424 million) and up 25.1% from March 2021 ($383.7 million).
Mobile sports betting made up the bulk of the total handle with $451.6 million of the $480 million total. For March, the mobile handle of $451.6 million was up 13.4% from February, and the retail sports betting handle of $26.4 million was up 3.9% from February.
The March total sports betting gross gaming revenue was $16.6 million ($14.7 million online, $1.93 retail). That was an obvious improvement from February (minus-$4.8 million).
For March, total sports betting state tax was $878,225 ($805,334 online, $72,891 retail), up 143.7% from February ($360,354).
Last week, the Soaring Eagle Casino announced that its online sports betting platform was live. It’s the 15th online operator in the state. The casino’s retail sportsbook launched on April 4.
Brick-and-Mortar Casinos
Looking at the three brick-and-mortar commercial casinos in Detroit, they had combined adjusted gross receipts in March of about $121 million, up 26.5% from February ($95.6 million).
For the Detroit casinos, the March state wagering tax was about $9.8 million, up 26.5% from February, and the city wagering tax for the month was nearly $14.4 million, up 26.5% from February.
Tribal brick-and-mortar casino revenues are not reported.
