The Illinois Gaming Board reported on Wednesday $107.8 million in adjusted gross sports betting revenue for August as operators ran roughshod on the betting public in parlays.
Sportsbook winnings surged 82.2% compared to last year as the 10.5% hold on $1.03 billion in traditional handle was more than 3.7 percentage points higher. Wagering was up 17.3% compared to August 2024, and Illinois posted a $1 billion monthly handle for the 24th time.
State tax revenue totaled $32.2 million, with $5.3 million of that coming from the per-wager surcharge tax that took effect with the new fiscal year July 1. All 10 mobile operators have paid only a $0.25 surcharge per wager through the first two months, but that changed for FanDuel and DraftKings at some point in September (a month not yet formally reported) as the two crossed the 20 million wager threshold that triggers an increase to $0.50 per wager.
The per-wager surcharge tax has generated $10.5 million in receipts for the state. The $50.1 million in taxes via operator revenue the first two months of Fiscal Year 2026 is already $22.2 million ahead of last year’s pace.
Public takes a paddlin’ on parlays
Given Illinois is the no. 2 market nationally for handle, the fact that large-scale success for operators hinges on parlay performance is not overly surprising. The multi-leg wagers have long been a revenue driver in the Land of Lincoln, and August was no different as revenue totaled $61.9 million thanks to a robust 21.3% win rate against $290.5 million handle.
It was the fourth consecutive month the collective hold eclipsed 20%, and parlay winnings for the calendar year cleared $500 million. The $543 million in year-to-date revenue from such wagers is an increase of 26%, slightly outpacing the 24.4% rise in handle to $2.84 billion.
Four of the 10 mobile operators had a hold above 20%, and another two were 19.7% or better. FanDuel was tops in revenue with $23.2 million on the strength of a 23.5% win rate, while DraftKings claimed $20.2 million with a 21.5% hold.
Fanatics was one of the two books that narrowly missed the 20% hold, but it still came away with $5.7 million in winnings. BetRivers had the highest hold of the group at 24.5% in reaping $2.9 million. BetMGM and bet365 combined for nearly $5 million in revenue with holds of 16.3% and 18.1%, respectively.
As a point of comparison, the statewide hold on single-event wagering was 6.3% on $726.9 million worth of wagering.
Scouting the surcharges
It is still too early to tell just how deep an impact the per-wager surcharge tax will have, but once again, it is clear FanDuel and DraftKings are shouldering the heaviest financial burden. The two leviathans accounted for nearly three-quarters of this month’s total surcharge taxes and were the only two in August ahead of the 1.67 million average monthly wagers needed to reach 20 million in a fiscal year.
| Operator | Wagers | Tax Payment | Percentage of Operator Tax Payments | |
| FanDuel | 8,441,358 | $2,110,339.50 | 39.72% | |
| DraftKings | 7,336,668 | $1,834,167.00 | 34.52% | |
| Fanatics | 1,325,173 | $331,293.25 | 6.24% | |
| bet365 | 1,133,743 | $283,435.88 | 5.34% | |
| BetMGM | 849,923 | $212,480.75 | 4.00% | |
| BetRivers | 612,687 | $153,171.75 | 2.88% | |
| Caesars | 577,658 | $144,414.50 | 2.71% | |
| ESPN BET | 520,615 | $130,153.75 | 2.45% | |
| Hard Rock Bet | 422,322 | $105,580.50 | 1.99% | |
| Circa Sports | 30,890 | $7,722.50 | 0.15% | |
| TOTALS | 21,251,037 | $5,312,759.37 |
That said, Fanatics does project to be above that average starting in September when NFL and college football wagering kicks in. Bet365 may also be in that mix as the only other mobile book to reach seven figures in betting volume in August.
The surcharge has skewed the effective tax rate higher on revenue for mobile operators. The near-$4 million in wager surcharges paid by FanDuel and $3.9 million by DraftKings essentially backfilled their progressions to the 30% tax bracket based on revenue thresholds in the first two months of the fiscal year as their effective tax rates when combining the two are 30% and 29.9%, respectively.
The other eight operators have yet to move off the base 20% rate on AGR, but some have seen their rates rise notably. Bet365 has an effective tax rate of 27.6% when combining the pair, while Fanatics is at 23.6% thanks to strong sportsbook performance weighing heavier than the surcharge. The effective tax rates of five other books range from 22.8% for BetRivers to 26% for Hard Rock Bet.
Beacuse Circa Sports paid out $158,875 above its $8.2 million handle, it has generated just $61,030 in AGR the first two months of the year and paid $12,206 — less than half the $26,667 remitted for the wagering surcharge.
Though it is clearly an anomaly that likely will be eventually rebalanced based on performance, Circa’s effective tax rate is currently 43.7%. That is above the maximum 40% tier in the state for operators who surpass $200 million in AGR for a fiscal year.
Revenue roundup
DraftKings led all operators for August with $38.1 million in revenue, attaining a 10.6% hold on $360.6 million in completed events handle. FanDuel was a relatively close second at $34.3 million, crafting an 11.6% win rate from $296.3 million worth of wagers.
Fanatics had the highest hold of the 10 mobile books at 12.1% in generating $10.8 million revenue, while BetRivers ($6.2 million) and BetMGM ($4.8 million) rounded out the top half.
Bet365 grabbed the sixth spot at $3.8 million, followed by Caesars at $3.1 million. ESPN Bet ($2.7 million) and Hard Rock Bet ($1.7 million) completed the list of nine books that finished in the black for August, with five of them posting holds of 10.5% or better.
