In the United States land-based gambling industry, traditional casino revenue performance was notably strong in July 2023, with nationwide revenue generated from casino slot machines and table games reaching a new all-time monthly record of USD 4.4 billion. This surge was propelled by seasonal travel trends and the addition of several new physical casino properties. The number is part of the Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker, a state-by-state and cumulative insight into the U.S. commercial gaming industry’s financial performance based on state revenue reports, and elaborated by the American Gaming Association (AGA).
After the first seven months of 2023, aggregate revenue from traditional casino gaming, sports betting and iGaming was USD 37.91 billion, outperforming 2022’s record-setting pace by 11%. At the state level, 21 of 31 commercial gaming jurisdictions that were operational a year ago and have complete data available saw gaming revenue growth from July 2022.
In addition to the upsurge of land-based gaming, overall gaming revenue continues to be primarily fueled by the ongoing expansion and acceleration of online gaming, with combined revenue from online sports betting and iGaming increasing 25.2% year-over-year in July.
Although the pace of overall annual commercial gaming revenue progress lags digital offerings, the rate of annual revenue growth from land-based gaming, encompassing slot machines, table games and retail sports betting, remained steady at 2.5% in both June and July. This is a significant shift from the previous three months, during which land-based gaming growth was flat. The summer expansion in land-based revenue was driven by robust performance of destination markets, with the Las Vegas Strip achieving its highest revenue ever in July, and several new regional casinos enjoying their inaugural summer season in Illinois, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Land-based casino slot machines and table games continue to serve as the primary drivers of commercial gaming revenue. In July 2023, slot and table revenue reached all-time highs individually and collectively with combined revenue of USD 4.40 billion, slot revenue of USD 3.13 billion (+3.2%) and table revenue of USD 976.3 million (+1.7%). The individual slot and table game figures do not include data from Louisiana and Michigan due to state reporting differences.
Through the end of July, combined revenue from casino slot machines and table games totaled USD 28.97 billion, a 3.6% increase over the same period last year, leaving the land-based casino industry well positioned for a third consecutive record revenue year.
At the state level, 21 out of 26 commercial gaming states that offered land-based casino slot machines and table games in 2022 posted year-to-date revenue growth in this segment through July.
Revenue from sports betting and iGaming continued to expand, with both verticals reporting their best July revenue levels ever. Commercial land-based and online sportsbooks collectively generated revenue of USD 497.7 million across 27 jurisdictions, excluding Arizona, Illinois (had not reported July data at the time of publication) and Tennessee (no longer reports sports betting revenue). This marks an increase of 28.4% from July 2022, when commercial sports betting markets were active in 25 jurisdictions (excluding Tennessee for comparison purposes).
Through July, year-to-date commercial sports betting revenue reached USD 5.46 billion, exceeding the same period in the previous year by 63.1%.
Finally, combined iGaming revenue generated in Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia grew 22.7% in July, getting USD 481.5 million.
Notably, national iGaming revenue has declined by 9.9% from its peak in March 2023. With four consecutive months of sequential contraction, this is the longest such pull back for the vertical since its expansion beyond New Jersey and Delaware in 2019. The spring and summer decline in iGaming revenue may be an emerging consumer trend for the vertical: a similar pattern was observed in 2022, when iGaming revenue contracted by 7.1% between March and July. Year-to-date iGaming revenue stands at USD 3.45 billion, reflecting an increase of 22.6% compared to the same period in 2022.
