The question was met with a chuckle. How slow are the summer months for sports betting?

“I think most risk managers and sportsbook managers are probably on vacation,” said John Holden, a business professor at Indiana University with a background in sports and gambling law. “Especially once NBA and NHL playoffs wrap up, there’s not a lot going on.”

After a stretch that included the busiest months and events of the sports betting calendar, Maine and the rest of the country will enter the summer slump. The sports that draw the most attention from bettors, most notably NFL, college football and NBA basketball, aren’t on the calendar. Most of the sports that are — baseball, golf and tennis — don’t generate much gambling interest. As a result, handles (the amount of money wagered) take a nosedive.

“It’s not quite half (the fall interest), but it’s approaching that,” said Dustin Gouker, a gaming consultant and former writer at Legal Sports Report. “Sportsbooks would love people to stay and bet more over the summer, it’s just that they don’t have as compelling an offer. … What’s getting you to log in and place a sports bet? Arguably nothing.”

The summer will follow an eventful stretch in Maine sports gambling. From January to March — April revenue figures have not yet been posted by the Maine Department of Public Safety, which oversees the Gambling Control Unit — about $140.5 million was wagered on DraftKings and Caesars Sportsbook, a 17.7% increase over the $119.4 million bet in those months in 2024.

The state brought in roughly $1.6 million for that period, a 33% increase over the $1.2 million for those three months in 2024. The state receives 10% of the adjusted gross receipts, the amount of the handle left over after payouts to bettors and federal taxes.

That period also saw the Gambling Control Unit deny in January the license for Oddfellahs Sportsbook and Bar, Maine’s only in-person sportsbook.

Oddfellahs challenged, and a judge’s order on Feb. 6 (three days before the Super Bowl) allowed the venue to temporarily resume its betting activity, pending a final hearing.

Oddfellahs owner Michael Cianchette said Thursday that the venue is still taking bets, and will do so until a hearing to decide the matter takes place. Superior Court Justice John O’Neil, who issued the order in February, will make the ruling.

“We’re still operating, and we look forward to the judge making the final decision on all of this,” said Cianchette, who is unsure when the hearing will be. “We’re certainly hopeful, and the fact that Justice O’Neil already said he thought we were going to prevail gives us confidence that he’ll ultimately land in that same place.”

NO NEEDLE MOVERS

It’s a backdrop to what will be a slower period for sportsbooks in Maine. In 2024, the mobile handle fell from roughly $47.5 million in March to $38.4 million in April, and passed $40 million only once ($42.7 million in July) before climbing to $51.6 million with football’s arrival in September.

The contrast is even more stark nationally; according to iGaming Analyst, the average handle in 2024 for the months of June, July and August ($8.7 billion) was roughly 62% of the $14 billion wagered in September, and just under 79% of the $11.1 billion wagered in May, the last full month of NBA and NHL playoffs.

The issue isn’t a lack of sports. There are baseball games every night, the WNBA season is in progress, golf and tennis have weekly tournaments, and quadrennial events like the Olympics and men’s and women’s World Cup can offer bonus action. Those sports just don’t translate into gambling interest, largely because they don’t generate the television audiences.

“Most people when they’re betting, they’re looking for a reason to add something to their viewing experience,” Holden said. “Sitting through an early July, late June game with a couple of fifth starters going at it is not prime entertainment.”

Brett Smiley, the editorial director for InGame.com and Casino Reports and a co-founder of SportsHandle.com, said baseball’s pace likely hinders betting interest.

“I think the pace of NFL and college football makes it more amenable to a lot of betting. People kind of form opinions early in the week and kind of fire away throughout,” he said. “There’s probably some fatigue (with baseball). … You really need to be on top of baseball to see who’s in the lineup, what the pitcher versus batter matchups are.”

Summer sports also aren’t as conducive for the more popular betting styles. Football and basketball draw plenty of action due to point spreads, which are not as pertinent in baseball.

“It’s one of the main ways people bet on things,” said Gouker, with Legal Sports Report. “In baseball, you do have a run line, but it’s usually set at 1.5 either way. It’s just not as popular a way to bet on things. … Point spreads are, other than parlays and props, kind of the dominant way to bet on sports, and it’s just not the natural way to bet on baseball.”

The other summer sports have their caveats as well, due to either a lack of big names or American presence.

“The Women’s World Cup will generate interest, but it will be challenging since it’s being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand,” Smiley said. “Tennis also currently lacks an American ‘it’ person, and the lack of a marquee event on U.S. soil during the summer makes it a challenge to draw new bettors.”

At Oddfellahs, Cianchette hopes that, with 35 televisions showing games around the clock, customers who may not have come in to bet will become interested.

“It’s an amenity. It’s like playing the claw machine at the movie theater,” he said. “You’re there, you’re waiting, it’s part of an experience. And rather than put a dollar to try to win a teddy bear, maybe you put $10 down to see if the Detroit Tigers can take it all.”

TRENDING UPWARD?

More fruitful summer options, however, could be on the way. The WNBA has seen a rise in popularity, due in part to the emergence of star players like Caitlin Clark. The league reported that last year was its most watched season in 24 years, with an average viewership of 1.19 million viewers on ESPN platforms, which was a 170% increase from 2023.

Gouker said this could lead to a similar effect as the Four Nations hockey tournament, which generated impressive ratings, and as a result saw significant betting turnout. BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel all reported that the final between Canada and the United States was the most bet-on hockey event of all time.

“Sports betting parallels interest,” he said. “There’s not a whole lot of science to it. The more popular an event is, the more people are going to bet on it.”

Holden said the industry is waiting to see if the WNBA’s increasing interest holds, and then correlates to an uptick in betting interest.

“That’s one of the things sportsbooks are definitely hoping for,” he said. “There’s a lot of hope there, we’re waiting to see what comes of it.”

The arrival of big events on American soil could spark action in coming years. The United States will host the men’s World Cup next year, and the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

“Soccer has not really ever grabbed the attention of the betting public in the U.S.,” Gouker said, “(but) I will say I think next year, when the World Cup comes to North America, that’s a pretty interesting point. It’ll be interesting to see how much sportsbooks focus on that, and how much it will (boost) customer acquisition.”

It could help, though in the betting landscape, summer will still have a ways to go to catch up to the other seasons.

“We’re just never going to get to a point where these spring and summer months are ever going to be the same as a fall and a winter,” Gouker said. “We have all these things, basketball, football, college and pro, NBA. All these things happen all at once, and the sportsbook then becomes a companion. ‘I’m watching something, maybe I’ll place a bet on it.’ “