Gaming Control Board Reports Total Revenue Up 3.4% In December

HARRISBURG, PA:  Figures released today by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board shows total gaming and fantasy contests revenue generated in the Commonwealth during December 2019 was 3.4% above revenue generated in December 2018.

Sources of gaming revenue regulated by the Board include slot machines, table games, internet gaming, retail and internet sports wagering, fantasy contests and video gaming terminals. The Board has posted separate reports for these types of gaming on its website.

The following chart compiles all revenue generated in December 2019 by casinos along with fantasy contests and video gaming terminals operated by other vendors, and includes a comparison to total revenue generated last December:

Total tax revenue generated collectively through all forms of gaming and fantasy contests was $118,178,675* during December of 2019.

Slot Machine Revenue

December’s gross revenue from slot machines at the 12 casinos was $187,473,942, a 7.6% decrease in revenue when compared to the $202,840,435 generated in December 2018.

The average number of slot machines operating on a daily basis was 24,116 during December 2019 compared to 25,442 at the casinos in December 2018. 

Gross slot machine revenue for each of the casinos, with the percentage change reflected over the previous year, is as follows: 

Tax revenue from the play of slots machines in December of this year was $96,755,158*.

Table Games Revenue

Table games revenue for December 2019 was $78,094,839, an increase of 4.8% over December of last year when revenue was $74,516,793.

Gross table games revenue for each of the casinos, with the percentage change reflected over the previous year, is as follows:

Total tax revenue from table games play during December was $12,539,426* with an average of 1,266 tables in daily operation statewide.

Internet Casino-Type Gaming Revenue

Casino games offered online generated gross revenue of $10,624,699 during December. That figure is 10.3% higher than the previous month of November 2019 when revenue was $9,655,811.

A breakdown of revenue of casino games offered online is as follows:

Tax revenue generated from internet gaming play during December was $3,816,774*.

Sports Wagering Revenue

December’s total sports wagering handle from both retail and online outlets was $342,560,389, 8.2% above the previous month’s wager total of $316,468,264.  At the same time, the taxable revenue figure for December of this year was 22.7% lower than November 2019, $11,374,482 compared to $14,720,686.

December sports wagering total handle and a breakout of revenue by casino is as follows:

¹Operated by Parx Casino

² A breakout of the handle between retail and online sportsbooks can be found on the website report.

Tax revenue generated from sports wagering during December was $4,094,813*.

Video Gaming Terminals

Total adjusted revenue for December 2019 for video gaming terminals (VGTs) was $879,153 compared to $659,288 in November, an increase of 33%. Each of the establishments operated the maximum of 5 machines. By the close of December, two operators had placed VGT’s in a total of 20 truck stop establishments.

Truck Stop VGT adjusted revenue for each of the terminal operators during December is as follows:

¹ operated VGTs in 15 establishments during December

² operated VGTs in 5 establishments during December

 Tax revenue collected from the play of VGTs through December was $457,159*.

Fantasy Contests

Fantasy Contests revenue was $3,435,621 in December 2019, an increase of 20.1% over December of last year when revenue was $2,860,503.

Fantasy Contests adjusted revenue for each of the operators which had revenue for December 2019 and December 2018 are displayed in the following table:

Tax revenue collected from the play of Fantasy Contests in December of this year was $515,343*.

*Tax revenue figures reflect amount generated prior to any adjustments by the PA Department of Revenue

About the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is tasked to oversee all aspects of gambling legalized under 2004’s Race Horse Development and Gaming Act and the Gaming Expansion Act of 2017. In addition to slot machine and table games gambling at land-based casinos, the expansion includes online casino games available to date on five sites; sports wagering offered through sportsbooks at 12 locations and through eight online outlets; video gaming terminals (VGTs) offered as of this date at 21 qualified truck stops; and, fantasy sports contests through eight providers.

The mature land-based casino industry in Pennsylvania currently consists of 10 stand-alone and racetrack casinos in operation, along with the two smaller resort casinos.  These facilities collectively employ over 16,000 people and annually generate over $1.4 billion in tax revenue from slot machine and table games play. Construction of a 13^th casino is currently underway along with a number of new “mini-casinos” that are expected to begin operation over the next couple of years.

Additional information about both the PGCB’s gaming regulatory efforts and Pennsylvania’s gaming industry can be found at https://gamingcontrolboard.pa.gov  . You can also follow the agency on Twitter by choosing @PAGamingControl.