Pennsylvania Casino Revenue Stagnates, iGaming Continues Upwards Run

Posted on: November 21, 2024, 10:33h. 

Last updated on: November 21, 2024, 10:41h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Pennsylvania casino revenue from in-person slot machines and table games totaled approximately $274.5 million in October 2024, a negligible 0.2% year-over-year gain.

Pennsylvania casino revenue GGR
A blackjack dealer at Rivers Casino Pittsburgh. Pennsylvania casino revenue from retail slots and table games totaled $274.5 million in October 2024. (Image: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Pennsylvania’s 17 brick-and-mortar casinos combined to win $200.6 million from their slots and $73.9 million from their tables. Slots managed to offset a more than 9% year-over-year decline on the felt, as the one-armed bandits increased their net win by over 4%.

Though last month marked only a negligible 0.2% improvement from October 2023, October 2024 returned the brick-and-mortar casino industry to growth after legacy GGR fell almost 2% in September. Pennsylvania’s casinos also remained stable, as casinos in Atlantic City saw in-person play slow by 8.5%.

Sportsbooks experienced a rough month, as October hold tumbled 43% as many Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers bettors saw the spreads, moneylines, and over/unders go their way. Online poker and fantasy sports rake were also in the red, as those segments respectively saw revenue of $2.2 million and $2.21 million, down 6% and 21%.

iGaming Continues Growth

The segment declines were more than offset by iGaming such as online slots and interactive table games.

Online casinos won almost $140.8 million from slots and $46 million from tables for a combined win of approximately $186.8 million. The iGaming win represented a 22.5% surge from October 2023, a difference of more than $34.3 million.

Online casino gambling continues to attract both legacy gamblers and new players to the internet gaming platforms.

Penn Entertainment dominates the iGaming market in Pennsylvania, with the Hollywood casino operator accounting for $69.4 million of the October revenue. Boyd Gaming’s Valley Forge Casino Resort was a distant second at $51.9 million, and Rivers Casino was third at $33.2 million.

State Fines VGT Operators

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), which issued the October gaming revenue report on Wednesday, also provided an update on regulatory violations. The state gaming regulator said it approved consent agreements presented by the Board’s Office of Enforcement Counsel relating to two video gaming terminal operator licensees.

The PGCB signed off on a $37,500 fine against a TA Travel Center located at 7848 Linglestown Road in Harrisburg for allowing its VGT room to be open without a board-credentialed employee on site. State gaming laws require that VGT locations have board-certified employees working whenever their gaming machines are in operation.

The PGCB additionally fined the Love’s Travel Stops location, also in Harrisburg, at 1165 Harrisburg Pike, for a similar violation. The truck stop was issued a $32,500 penalty.

Seventeen People Banned

The public leaving minors in their vehicles while they gamble inside a casino continues to be a problem in the commonwealth.

The PGCB approved the placement of five individuals onto its Involuntary Exclusion Lists for leaving children unattended in their vehicles while gambling. One incident involved a male patron leaving an infant in a vehicle at Hollywood Casino Morgantown while the outside temperature was 91 degrees Fahrenheit while he made a bet at the casino’s sportsbook.

The Board also banned four individuals for committing fraud using iGaming sites

“The eight additional persons placed on the Casino Involuntary Exclusion List, whose presence in a licensed facility would be inimical to the interest of the Commonwealth and licensed gaming, were for various offenses,” the PGCB reported.