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Like multiple other legal sports betting states in the region, the Bay State experienced a decline in dollars wagered during the month of March Madness.
Key Takeaways
- The handle failed to reach $700 million for the second time since August 2025.
- Behind a 9.6% hold, gross revenue jumped 24%.
- DraftKings continues to dominate wagering in Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) reported a 9.5% year-over-year handle decrease as online and retail sportsbooks generated $699 million during a busy sports month. The previous March produced $772.4 million in wagers.
New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania also reported handle declines during a month that included the NCAA men’s and women’s tournaments as well as MLB’s Opening Day and regular-season games in the NBA and NHL.
While January’s handle improved year over year, March marked the second consecutive month that Bay State operators took in fewer wagering dollars, and it was just the second handle under $700 million since August 2025.
Massachusetts online sports betting operators generated $73 million less than the previous March’s handle, while retail wagering was down more than $2 million.
Revenue rises
Despite the decrease in betting, operators still thrived in March, generating $67.1 million in gross revenue from a 9.6% hold. Profits spiked 24% year over year thanks to more March Madness upsets and two fewer No. 1 seeds reaching the Final Four, which helped raise the win rate by more than 2.5 points.
The most profitable March since online wagering launched in 2023 raised year-to-date revenue to $227.8 million, $10 million more than the first three months of 2025 produced. Since mobile sports betting launched three years ago, operators have generated nearly $23 billion in wagers and $2.2 billion in Massachusetts revenue.
No slowing down for DraftKings
| Online Operator | March Handle | Gross Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | $344.5 million | $33.4 million |
| FanDuel | $172.9 million | $19 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $70.3 million | $4.8 million |
| BetMGM | $52.3 million | $5.2 million |
| Caesars | $26.6 million | $1.9 million |
| theScore Bet | $19.3 million | $1.7 million |
No online operator is close to DraftKings in Massachusetts. Even with the New England Patriots in February’s Super Bowl, DraftKings still took in $30 million more in dollars wagered during March. The online sportsbook led all operators with a $344.5-million handle and won back 9.7%, which was way down from February’s 13.75% hold.
FanDuel led the state with an 11% win rate that produced $19 million in gross revenue from a $172.9-million handle, which was up $27 million from the previous month. Fanatics took in $70.3 million in wagers but only won back 6.8%, the lowest hold in March.
BetMGM just missed out on a double-digit win rate from a $52.3-million handle, while Caesars kept 7.1% from the $26.6 million in wagers. An 8.7% hold for theScore Bet led to $1.9 million in gross revenue, matching February’s haul, and Bally Bet produced a 9.4% win rate on $4.7 million in wagers.
More coming?
The Bay State’s seven online sportsbooks could soon receive some company. The MGC agreed earlier this month to reopen the state’s licensing process to potentially add more mobile operators after a request from bet365.
The U.K.-based sports betting operator is live in 16 U.S. states and could possibly want to join Massachusetts’ market as an untethered sportsbook, something the MGC is open to while battling in court to keep prediction market platform Kalshi out of the state.
“That does hearten me, that people still want to enter the legal market in Massachusetts,” MGC chair Jordan Maynard said earlier in April. “So I have to say I respect that.”
This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.
