Ohio sportsbooks kept tax revenue flowing in May even though betting activity barely changed from a year earlier. State tax collections reached $17.8 million for the month, lifting the 2026 total above $87 million. At the same time, lawmakers continue to discuss legislation that would ban online sports betting along with betting on college sports and several other markets.
A steady hold helped operators post another strong month despite flat wagering activity. Ohio sportsbooks accepted $744.1 million in bets during May, only slightly above the $741.2 million reported one year earlier. Gross gaming revenue reached $88.5 million from an 11.9% hold, almost identical to May 2025. Ohio has now produced at least $87 million in sports betting revenue for three straight months, while taxable revenue of $88.6 million ranked as the third highest monthly total of 2026.
Good To Know
FanDuel and DraftKings finished almost level in betting handle, but FanDuel created a much bigger gap in revenue.
| Operator | Handle | Revenue |
| FanDuel | $230 million | $36.2 million |
| DraftKings | $229.8 million | $26.8 million |
| bet365 | $75.2 million | $7.2 million |
| Fanatics Sportsbook | $52.7 million | $5 million |
| BetMGM | $51.3 million | $4.1 million |
| Caesars | $27.6 million | $3.1 million |
FanDuel converted a 15.7% hold into $36.2 million in revenue, almost $10 million more than DraftKings despite only a $200,000 difference in handle. DraftKings collected $26.8 million from $229.8 million in wagers.
bet365 remained the clear third largest online sportsbook with $75.2 million in handle and $7.2 million in revenue. Fanatics Sportsbook narrowly finished ahead of BetMGM in betting volume, taking $52.7 million in wagers compared with $51.3 million.
Caesars reported an 11.2% hold to produce $3.1 million in revenue. Hard Rock Bet accepted $24.2 million in wagers with a 10.7% hold, while theScore Bet generated a 7.4% hold from $17.5 million in bets.
Mobile sportsbooks continued to dominate the market. Online operators generated more than 98% of total betting handle and produced $87.2 million of overall revenue. Retail sportsbooks accepted $11 million in wagers and reported $1.3 million in revenue.
May betting activity largely centered around the NBA and NHL playoffs. Cleveland Cavaliers fans watched the team survive a seven game opening round series against the Detroit Pistons before a sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals by eventual NBA champion New York Knicks.