Retail Casino Gaming Decrease Leads To Lower Overall PA Gaming Revenue In November

However, iGaming and Sports Wagering again set revenue highs

HARRISBURG, PA:  Figures released today by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board show total revenue generated from gaming and fantasy contests in the Commonwealth during November 2020 was $284,267,329 which represents a decrease of 2.68% compared to revenue generated in November 2019.

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

The following chart compiles all revenue generated in November 2020 by casinos along with fantasy contests and video gaming terminals operated by other vendors, and includes a comparison to total revenue generated last November. The new addition to this report is Live! Casino Pittsburgh which began generating slot machine, table games and sports wagering revenue from its Westmoreland County facility on November 14^th:

Total tax revenue generated collectively through all forms of gaming and fantasy contests was $115,599,645* during November 2020.

November Revenue by Game Type

The Board is also providing a synopsis of revenue year-over-year by types of games: 

Slot Machine Revenue

November’s gross revenue from slot machines was $129,530,805, a 31.59% decrease in revenue when compared to the $189,333,840 generated in November 2019.

The number of slot machines in operation on November 30, 2020 was 16,957 compared to 24,125 at the casinos on November 30, 2019. 

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

¹ Closed due to Covid-19 restrictions implemented by the City of Philadelphia on November 20^th

Tax revenue from the play of slots machines in November of this year was $67,584,647*.

Table Games Revenue

Table games revenue for November 2020 was $52,336,318, a decrease of 29.98% from November of last year when revenue was $74,739,560.

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

¹ Closed due to Covid-19 restrictions implemented by the City of Philadelphia on November 20^th

Total tax revenue from table games play during November was $8,418,667 *.

Internet Casino-Type Gaming Revenue

Casino games offered online generated gross revenue of $59,775,505 during November 2020 compared to $9,655,811 in November 2019. The previous high revenue month for Internet Casino-Type gaming was in October 2020.

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

Tax revenue generated from internet gaming play during November was $24,523,098*.

Total Internet Gaming revenue for each of the casinos during November of this year and November of last year, if applicable, is as follows:

Sports Wagering Revenue

November 2020 total sports wagering handle was $491,910,713 or 6.45% lower than October 2020 total of $525,802,524.   At the same time, the taxable revenue figure for November 2020 was $37,350,246 or 1.56% higher than October taxable revenue of $36,776,926 which had been the previous high for a month.

November 2020 sports wagering total handle and revenue is as follows:

1Operated by Parx Casino

² Operated by Mohegan Sun Pocono

³ A breakout of the handle between retail and online sportsbooks can be found on the website report.

⁴ Retail sports wagering closed due to Covid-19 restrictions implemented by the City of Philadelphia on November 20th

Sports wagering revenue for each of the casinos for this year and for last year if applicable, is as follows:

¹Operated by Parx Casino

² Operated by Mohegan Sun Pocono

³ Retail sportsbook no longer in operation

⁴ Retail sports wagering closed due to Covid-19 restrictions implemented by the City of Philadelphia on November 20th

Tax revenue generated from sports wagering during November was $13,446,089*.

Video Gaming Terminals

Total adjusted revenue for November for video gaming terminals (VGTs) was $2,259,393. By the close of November, four VGT Terminal Operators were operating the maximum permitted five machines at 39 truck stop establishments.

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

¹ operated VGTs in 22 establishments during November

² operated VGTs in 9 establishments during November

³ operates VGTs in 4 establishments during November

⁴ operates VGTs in 4 establishments during November

Tax revenue collected from the play of VGTs in November was $1,174,884.

Fantasy Contests

Fantasy Contests revenue was $3,015,062 in November 2020, an increase of 1.14% over November of last year when revenue was $2,981,157.

Fantasy Contests adjusted revenue for each of the operators which had revenue for November 2020 and November 2019 are displayed in the following table:

¹No longer operating in PA

Tax revenue collected from the play of Fantasy Contests in November of this year was $452,259*.

*All 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 12 sites; sports wagering offered through sportsbooks at 13 retail locations and through 11 online outlets; video gaming terminals (VGTs) offered as of this date at 40 qualified truck stops; and, fantasy sports contests through six providers.

The mature land-based casino industry in Pennsylvania currently consists of six racetrack (Category 1) and four stand-alone (Category 2) casinos in, along with the two resort (Category 3) casinos and one mini-casino (Category 4).  These facilities collectively employ over 16,000 people and, along with other types of Board-regulated gaming, annually generate over $1.5 billion in tax revenue. An additional Category 2 casino is expected to open in the first quarter of 2021, while a number of Category 4 casinos 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.