The Indiana Gaming Commission reported sports betting handle of $361.6 million for May on Wednesday, a 27.6% increase from last year as basketball interest perked up thanks to the Indiana Pacers and Caitlin Clark.
Basketball handle totaled $97.2 million, an increase of $25.5 million from May 2023 as the Pacers reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2014. Clark, the No. 1 overall pick of the Indiana Fever who has made the WNBA a mainstream sports talking point as much for her on-court play as what goes on around her in relation to women’s basketball, also helped generate action despite the Fever’s 1-8 start to the season.
The state’s 16 retail sportsbooks and 12 sports betting apps combined for almost $39 million in taxable sports betting revenue, which included $306,000 worth of adjustments in their favor. That was up 15.4% from last year, though the 10.8% hold was more than 1.1 percentage points lower than 12 months prior.
Handle was down 8.2% from April, but revenue ticked 5.1% higher. Operators have attained a double-digit hold seven times in the last 13 months and cleared 9% on three other occasions in that span.