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PlayUSA projects that legal online and retail sportsbooks in Michigan will witness approximately $45 million in wagers from sports bettors for Super Bowl LVI.
The website is anticipating a total of $1 billion in bets nationwide for the upcoming Super Bowl game on February 13th, featuring the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals.
When online sports betting was first legalized, the projected number for Michigan’s game last year was less than half of what it currently stands at. This year’s game holds additional significance for Michigan due to the presence of Matthew Stafford, the former Detroit Lions quarterback, who is now playing for the Rams.
National handle could double for Super Bowl LVI
Online sports betting has experienced significant growth in the past year, as evidenced by the projection of $1 billion for this year’s Super Bowl handle. This figure represents a nearly twofold increase compared to the previous year’s handle, which stood at just over $500 million in legal wagers for the event.
Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayUSA.com, stated that the industry would consider reaching $1 billion in legal wagering for a single game as a remarkable achievement. He mentioned that a few years ago, this milestone would have appeared unattainable, but due to the continuous growth of sports betting in recent times, it is certain that legal wagering will skyrocket.
Throughout 2021, a staggering $50 billion in legal wagers were placed across the country, with the Super Bowl emerging as the most heavily bet-on single sporting event.
In a total of 31 states, sports betting has been legalized to some extent, with 11 of them having recently passed laws to allow it.
Michigan projected seventh in Super Bowl betting
Despite a changing environment, Michigan continues to be forecasted as one of the states with the highest betting activity for the Super Bowl.
Michigan ranks seventh overall in PlayUSA’s analysis with a projected $45 million.
This is how the top-11 appears:
- 1. Nevada: $175 million
- The cost of living in New York is $160 million.
- The state of New Jersey has accumulated a total of $130 million.
- 4. Illinois: $75 million
- 5. Pennsylvania: $70 million
- 6. Arizona: $55 million
- 7. Michigan: $45 million
- 8. Indiana: $40 million
- 9. Colorado: $35 million
- 10. Louisiana: $35 million
- 11. Virginia: $35 million
Last year, Michigan’s projected bet on the Super Bowl was $20 million, a relatively cautious estimate compared to this year, mainly due to the recent introduction of Michigan’s online sports betting market.
First chance to compare Michigan betting numbers year-to-year
The month of February 2022 promises to be a captivating period for studying the landscape of online sports betting in Michigan.
Online sports betting became legal on January 22, 2021, and February 2021 marked the first complete month since its launch.
In the previous year, the total wagers made in February amounted to $301.9 million, resulting in a gross revenue of $9.4 million for the twelve existing sports betting sites.
As of writing, the figures for January 2022 have not been made available. However, it is worth noting that in February of last year, the monthly handle ranked sixth highest for the entire year. In the last three months of 2021, Michigan witnessed a handle exceeding $460 million.
