Deputy Editor
BetMGM continues to assert itself as the online poker leader in the regulated U.S. market. In August, BetMGM poker achieved an estimated market share of 41.7%, its most dominant position yet.
It’s also the first time any operator has eclipsed a 40% share in the past two years. PokerStars and WSOP have both held more than that in the past, but at a time when the BetMGM brand hadn’t yet launched and Partypoker—now a BetMGM skin—was a distant third.
The August results confirm PokerScout’s predictions from earlier this month. While the summer World Series of Poker bracelet events put WSOP in first place temporarily, the longer-term trend has favored BetMGM. BetMGM has become the clear market leader overall, with PokerStars slipping into third place. Given that its revenue remained high even through the summer, it was inevitable that it would be more dominant than ever once WSOP came back down to its normal level.
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BetMGM Posts Mammoth YoY Growth of Nearly 50%
BetMGM’s increased dominance is perhaps most stark when looking at year-over-year growth numbers. There, PokerScout’s data indicates a growth rate of +49.3%, while its main competitors both posted YoY shrinkage:
| BetMGM | WSOP | PokerStars | |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2024 Revenue | $2,462,996 | $2,528,482 | $2,517,909 |
| August 2025 Revenue | $3,676,300 | $2,507,407 | $2,027,697 |
| Change | +49.3% | -0.8% | -19.5% |
BetMGM’s growth appears to be coming directly at the expense of WSOP. It increased its market share by 5.9 percentage points from July to August. WSOP saw its market share drop by a similar amount: 5.1 percentage points.
BetMGM also notably held a narrow market lead in July, making June the only month out of the entire year in which WSOP led.
That’s significant because WSOP has a massive advantage of thousands of engaged players traveling to Nevada to log on and play during the live WSOP. Last year, WSOP was number one for four months. It held a sizable lead in June and July, with about 38% of the market. It remained narrowly ahead in August, and bounced back to the top spot during a September series. Meanwhile, BetMGM had only around 28% of the market last summer. That wasn’t even good for second place, as PokerStars was at 33-34%.
PokerStars had begun 2024 with 39% of the market but declined steadily, ending up at 31% in December.
Despite its seasonal ups and downs, WSOP’s revenue has been essentially flat year-to-year. If BetMGM’s growth continues, WSOP won’t even be able to snag the lead back at the height of the series next July. It could be that July 2025 proves to be the last time anyone other than BetMGM leads for quite a few years.
PokerStars Continues Slipping as BetRivers Encroaches
Meanwhile, the disappointing numbers continue to roll in for PokerStars. While it didn’t lose the same chunk as WSOP compared with its July revenue, PokerStars’ 23% market share was its lowest number since the start of 2024.
Last year, September was a great month for PokerStars, as it jumped out of a virtual three-way tie to take the biggest slice of the pie at 36%. That’s almost certainly the result of its annual Championship of Online Poker (COOP) series, which offers millions in guaranteed prize money and produces a similar amount of excitement to WSOP’s online bracelets.
No such bump will be coming this year, when the September 2025 numbers are tallied. PokerStars disappointed players by cancelling the popular series this year on its stateside clients.
Failing to follow its competitors in pooling players from all legal states continues to cost PokerStars.
BetRivers, on the other hand, continues to grow. It has increased its revenue in each of the past four months, culminating in August’s record-high of $588,962. That’s still a far cry from BetMGM Poker, which has earned more than $3 million each of the past four months, by PokerScout’s estimate. However, BetRivers has more than tripled its revenue over the past year. Its growth — and PokerStars’ continued decline — raise the possibility that it could make a move into third within the next year or two.
While it doesn’t yet boast the player base of the top dogs, BetRivers does have popular pros Phil Galfond and Phil Hellmuth behind its marketing push. BetRivers also has Galfond’s unique Run It Once software powering the product itself.
At 6.7% of the market, it still has a ways to go before it’s a true factor in the market share race. But the continued early growth is a promising sign.
Image credit: Sarah Stierch/Wikimedia Commons (license)
