Record figures from igaming and sports betting drove gambling revenue in Pennsylvania to an all-time high of $5.70bn (£3.50bn/€5.24bn) in 2023.
The 2023 figure was 9.3% higher than the existing record of $5.21bn, which was set during 2022. Combined revenue in Pennsylvania includes slot machines, table games, sports wagering, igaming, video gaming terminals (VGTs) and fantasy contests.
Physical slots continued to lead the way in terms of revenue in Pennsylvania, with revenue here rising 3.1% to $2.46bn. However, land-based table games revenue slipped 1.9% to $971.7m.
Is igaming closing the gap on land-based gambling in Pennsylvania?
Elsewhere, revenue from igaming in 2023 hit $1.74bn, beating the previous record set in 2022 by 27.7%. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) did not publish a full breakdown of revenue per game type for this market.
However, the PGCB did reveal data on individual igaming operators. As was the case in 2022, Hollywood Casino at Penn National led the way with $712.4m in igaming revenue.
Valley Forge Casino Resort placed second in this sector with $392.7m in revenue. Following in third was Rivers Casino Philadelphia, posting revenue of $340.3m.
Igaming revenue in Pennsylvania has continued to grow exponentially since the regulated market launched in 2019. The state first surpassed the $1.00bn record milestone in 2021; should trends continue, it may well exceed $2.00bn in 2024.
Sports betting handle reaches record $7.68bn
Turning to sports betting, revenue hit an all-time high of $458.6m, surpassing the existing record in 2022 by 14.3%. Pennsylvania launched its legal sports wagering market in 2018.
As for handle, player spending on sports betting amounted to $7.68bn. This was 6.0% up from the previous record of $7.25bn reported in 2022.
Valley Forge Casino Resort and FanDuel remain the leaders in this market, posting $233.6m in revenue. Hollywood Casino at the Meadows and DraftKings were second with $121.1m, then Hollywood Casino Morgantown and BetMGM with $21.0m.
In terms of other revenue, the PGCB reported a 2.0% drop on VLT revenue to $41.2m in 2023. Fantasy sports contest revenue also declined 10.0% to $20.1m.
Pennsylvania sets monthly revenue record in December
Aside from setting several records in the full year, revenue also hit an all-time monthly high in December.
Total market revenue hit $534.2m, beating the previous record of $515.3m set in March 2023. This was also 12.5% higher than $475.0m in December 2022 and 20.1% up from $444.5m in November 2023.
Retail slots drew the most revenue, with the $207.8m generated being 4.9% higher than in 2022. Land-based table games revenue also edged up 1.6% to $82.9m.
Igaming revenue jumped 22.7% year-on-year to $165.1m. This figure includes $116.9m in online slots revenue, $45.8m from table games and $2.4m poker.
Hollywood Casino at Penn National placed first here with $61.0m in igaming revenue. Valley Forge Casino Resort were second on $41.3m, then Rivers Casino Philadelphia with $31.3m.
As for sports betting, revenue was up 32.7% to $72.5m, including $67.2m from online and $5.3m retail. Handle also increased by 22.6% to $925.6m.
Valley Forge Casino Resort and FanDuel led the way with revenue of $39.2m. Hollywood Casino at the Meadows and DraftKings were second with $19.2m, then Hollywood Casino Morgantown and BetMGM on $3.7m.
VLT revenue edged up 3.1% to $3.4m but fantasy sports revenue fell 11.3% to $2.5m.
