Missouri's Sports Betting Revenue Falls Despite World Cup Boost

WHO:

KCUR - Neil Schwartz, President of SBRnet

ABC17NEWS - Liz Hoffman of the Missouri Gaming Commission

ABC17NEWS - Mike Leara, Missouri Gaming Commission Commissioner

ABC17NEWS - Ryan Butler, senior news analyst at Covers.com

ABC17NEWS - Winning for Missouri Education, a group supporting sports betting

WHAT:

KCUR - Missouri's total taxable sports betting revenue was $13.67 million in June, a 36% decrease from the previous month.

KCUR - Approximately $1.37 million was collected in sports wagering taxes in June.

KCUR - The number of wagers in June decreased by 12% to 7.34 million.

KCUR - The total amount wagered in June was $258.3 million, a 0.8% increase from May.

ABC17NEWS - Missouri generated $20 million in taxable revenue in May, compared to $13.6 million in June.

ABC17NEWS - $1.084 million was transferred to the Sports Wagering Education Fund on June 9.

ABC17NEWS - An additional $2.129 million was transferred, bringing the total allocated to education to $3.213 million during the 2026 fiscal year.

ABC17NEWS - DraftKings accounted for $103.4 million in gross revenue in June, generating $5.7 million of the state's $13.6 million in taxable revenue.

WHERE:

KCUR - Missouri

ABC17NEWS - Kansas City, Missouri

WHEN:

ABC17NEWS - Sports betting was legalized in Missouri in December.

ABC17NEWS - The projected highest sports betting volume months are September, October, November, and December.

WHY:

KCUR - Neil Schwartz stated that the decrease in revenue is due to fewer people placing bets overall.

ABC17NEWS - Ryan Butler noted that bettors had a strong month on DraftKings and FanDuel, with many favorites winning, which negatively impacted sportsbooks' revenue.

HOW:

KCUR - Almost all sports bets (99.5%) were made on mobile betting sites.

ABC17NEWS - A 10% tax is applied to sports betting revenue, directed toward education, with operators allowed to deduct certain expenses before calculating taxable revenue.

Missouri's total taxable sports betting revenue dropped to $13.67 million in June, marking a significant 36% decrease from the previous month, while the number of wagers fell by 12% to 7.34 million. Despite the decline in revenue, the total amount wagered increased slightly to $258.3 million, with DraftKings generating $5.7 million of the state's taxable revenue. Nearly all bets, about 99.5%, were placed through mobile betting sites, and a 10% tax on the revenue is directed toward education, with a total of $3.213 million allocated during the fiscal year.