Michigan narrowly topped New York in active sportsbook accounts on NFL Sunday, leading a nationwide total of 5.7 million accounts across 28 legal U.S. sports betting markets, according to data from geolocation provider GeoComply.
The measure is accounts, not dollars. New York remains the country’s largest regulated sports betting market by handle.
GeoComply recorded 589,449 active Michigan betting accounts on Sunday, November 1, which was 0.3% more than New York’s 587,752. Pennsylvania ranked third with 570,386. The three states accounted for roughly 31% of the nationwide total.
The gap between Michigan and New York was fewer than 1,700 accounts. GeoComply released the figures Monday as part of its weekly NFL betting series, presenting them on an election-themed map ahead of Tuesday’s midterms.
The result stands out because Michigan has a smaller population than New York. Michigan launched online sports betting in January 2021, a year before New York, and has 15 authorized commercial and tribal operators, 13 of which offer sports betting.
Michigan also ranked first in active accounts relative to its population age 21 and older, at 8.26%. Washington, D.C. followed at 7.36%, West Virginia at 7.16%, New Jersey at 7% and Pennsylvania at 5.97%. New York did not appear in the top five, which means its rate was below Pennsylvania’s.
Active accounts count how many sportsbook accounts were in use on a given day. Handle is the total amount wagered. A state can lead in accounts while another leads in dollars if bettors in one place wager larger amounts or bet more often.
New York’s lead in handle is substantial. The New York State Gaming Commission reported $615.1 million wagered through mobile sportsbooks in the week ending October 18 alone, the fifth-highest weekly total in state history. In the four weeks of September, New York’s weekly handle ran from about $483 million to $611 million, roughly $2.26 billion combined.
Michigan reported $544.8 million in online sports betting handle for all of September, according to the Michigan Gaming Control Board. By that rough comparison, New York’s handle was about four times Michigan’s, though the periods are not identical and the Michigan figure is monthly while New York’s is weekly.
Betting accounts tend to peak on Sundays, when most NFL games are played. GeoComply’s technology is used by sportsbooks to verify that a bettor is physically inside a state where wagering is legal. Its counts reflect accounts that were active and geolocated on the day measured. An individual bettor may hold accounts with more than one sportsbook, so the figures are not a count of unique people.
The data does not include handle, revenue or results, and it does not show how much each account wagered.
Weekly account counts will show whether Michigan holds its narrow lead or New York retakes first place. With a gap of 0.3%, the ranking could change from one NFL Sunday to the next, and the margin is small enough to be affected by schedule, weather or promotions.
The state-run revenue reports will give the dollar picture. Michigan’s October results are due later this month, and New York’s commission publishes weekly handle and revenue figures on its website.
