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Sharp Increases Reported For Online Gaming In May

Poker Slides As Summer Kicks Off

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The country’s three major online gaming states once again saw some major increases for May, according to gaming regulators.

However, online poker continued to stagnate, dropping in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Here’s a look at some of the latest gaming reports.

Pennsylvania Sees Major Gains

Online gaming saw consistent growth in May in the Keystone State according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. Combined total revenue checked in at $521 million, an increase of 8.7% from May 2023.

Hollywood Casino and Valley Forge Casino Resort were the top properties in the state. Hollywood saw revenue of $81.7 million, up 9.8% from May 2023, and Valley Forge saw $79.6 million, a jump of 23.9%.

Online gaming also continues to balloon in the state, accounting for monthly gross revenue of $174.1 million in May, an increase of 23.5% from last year. Here’s a look at how those numbers break down compared to May 2023.

● Online slots – $126.9 million, up 26.2%
● Online table games – $44.9 million, up 18.6%
● Online poker – $2.3 million, down 9.1%

For sports betting, total handle reached $591.9, a 19.4% surge compared to 2023. Of that, the taxable revenue figure for May 2024 was $44.2 million, or 7.6% higher than last May. Total tax revenue from all forms of gaming reached $216.3 million for May.

New Jersey Records Double Digit iGaming Growth

In the Garden State, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reported revenue of $239.1 million for the nine casinos in Atlantic City. That’s up 5.2% compared to $227.3 million in May 2023. Year to date, the properties have seen revenue of $1.11 billion, flat compared to the same period in 2023.

For online gaming, the state saw revenues of $192.1 million, growing 19% compared to $161.4 million in May 2023. Year to date, revenue stands at $942.8 million, growth of 20.6% compared to $781.5 million for the prior year-to-date period.

Online poker saw a decrease in May, reporting revenue of $2.2 million, a drop of 8.2% compared to $2.4 million last May. With the World Series of Poker underway and offering significant online action and bracelet events, the Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Michigan numbers should see a boost this summer. WSOP.com also recently began offering shared liquidity among New Jersey, Michigan, and Nevada, which could also help numbers rise in the coming months.

For sports betting (including online), total revenue reached $78.8 million for May, a drop of 4.2% decrease compared to $82.2 million last year. However, year-to-date revenue was $513 million, a jump 37% increase compared to $374.5 million reported for the same period in 2023.

Total revenue from all forms of gaming was $510 in May, an 8.3% increase from $470.9 million reported in 2023. For year-to-date, total gaming revenue is now at $2.6 billion, a 13.1% increase from $2.3 billion last year.

Numbers Continue to Rise in Michigan

The Wolverine State saw $239.5 million in online gaming and sports betting gross receipts for May, a 2% increase compared to April. Online casino gaming totaled $198.6 million with sports betting at $40.9 million. Online poker isn’t separated out in Michigan, and is included in the iGaming casino totals. It seems likely the state saw similar declines as seen in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Adjusted gross receipts (AGR) for online casino and sports betting for May were $206.8 million, including $178.7 million from iGaming and $28.1 million for sports. This represents an increase of 2.6% for casino and 1.2% for sports betting compared to April. Compared to May 2023, iGaming was up by 31.9% and sports betting was up by 27.7%.

Total online sports betting handle was $343.7 million in May, down 13.9% from the $399.1 million in April. Operators submitted $38.8 million in taxes and payments to the state in May, including $38.8 million from online gaming.