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Online Sportsbook Wagers Grow 16% Year-on-Year in March in Kentucky

Ziv Chen

Last Updated: April 30, 2025 2:17 PM EDT • 1 min 32 sec read.

Online Sportsbook Wagers Grow 16% Year-on-Year in March in Kentucky
Pictured: People place bets on Oaks Day at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Photo by Albert Cesare / Courier Journal via Imagn Images.

Online sportsbooks recorded wagers of over $289 million in Kentucky during March, representing a 16% rise on the figure for March 2024. 

According to a report released by the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Corporation, online sports betting sites took $289.4 million in wagers during the month, compared to $246.5 million for the same month last year. Retail sportsbooks, by contrast, showed a decline of around 15% year-on-year, registering $8.2 million for March 2025, compared to $9.7 million last year.

Of Kentucky’s eight regulated sportsbooks, DraftKings and FanDuel remain the big two operators in the state’s online sports betting sector. DraftKings generated $104.7 million in wagers for March 2025, while FanDuel recorded $98.6 million. 

Those figures show that FanDuel is closing the gap on its longtime rival. Its online take increased by 16.5% to $84.6 million in March 2024, while DraftKings’ year-on-year rise was just 3.6%.

Kambi, which operates four of Kentucky's eight retail sportsbook facilities, once again dominated the retail wagering market. However, that dominance has declined from the 71.6% share it enjoyed in March 2024 to 66.7% this year. That is partly due to the opening of two new retail sportsbooks at Kentucky Downs, run by Circa and DraftKings.

Wagering Records

The figures for the best sportsbooks wagering come as Kentucky and the US horse racing scene gear up for the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby, the most prestigious and popular event on the calendar.

Last year, $320.5 million was wagered across the Derby day card, up from $288.7 million the year before. The race itself generated $210.7 million in wagers, a rise of $20 million from the 2023 figure, setting a new record. 

The Derby’s official betting partner, TwinSpires, which had its operations suspended in January by the Michigan Gaming Control Board, took a record $92.1 million in wagers that day, and the US sportsbook sector is hoping for another record-breaking weekend in 2025. 

Caesars Expansion

Another announcement this week could shake up the state's sports betting sector over the next few months. Caesars has reported integrating its pari-mutuel horse racing wagering platform with its sportsbook app in Kentucky. Caesars customers can now switch between the two wagering sites while using the same app.

The new service applies to customers in Kentucky and Colorado, and is the culmination of long-running negotiations between Caesars, the New York Racing Association, and NYRA Bets, as the betting operator seeks regulatory approval for expansion into more states.

Written By:
Ziv Chen
Ziv has over two decades of experience in the igaming and sports betting industry, having served in senior marketing and business development positions with both B2C and B2B companies, including Playtech and Microgaming. In 2019, Ziv decided to pursue his passion for writing and became a fulltime industry journalist, covering casino, sports, and gambling business news. He’s specialties include casino games and technology, US state gambling regulation, company performance, as well as gambling affiliates and marketing. As a Pitt graduate, Ziv is a diehard fan of all Pittsburgh sports teams, with the Steelers at the top of the list. In his free time, he enjoys reading crime fiction, biographies (mainly of sports personalities, but not only) and American history. Ziv’s Favorite quote: “We're going to pursue perfection, knowing full well we won't catch it, but we're going to relentlessly chase it," Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach.