Operator News
US – Commercial gaming enjoys second best ever month in October
By Phil - 15 December 2022
The US commercial gaming industry maintained its momentum in October with revenue reaching $5.29bn, increasing 10.5 per cent year-over-year and marking 20 consecutive months of growth. October was the industry’s second highest grossing month on record, only eclipsed by March 2022 ($5.35bn).
As 2022 draws to a close, the gaming industry remains on track for another record-setting year. Over the first ten months, commercial gaming revenue totaled $49.85bn, 14.7 per cent ahead of the same 10-month period in 2021.
Gaming revenue grew year-over-year across all verticals in October, with nationwide iGaming revenue setting an all-time monthly record. Combined revenue from slot machines and table games at casinos was $4.03bn, or 76.2 per cent of total commercial gaming revenue, while sports betting grossed $804.7m (15.2 per cent of total) and iGaming $453.1m (8.6 per cent of total).
Together, sports betting and iGaming combined for $1.26bn in October revenue, composing nearly a quarter (23.8 per cent) of total gaming revenue. Largely driven by a busy sports calendar, September and October have seen the highest proportion of commercial gaming revenue come from these emerging verticals since the peak of pandemic-driven casino closures in 2020.
Meanwhile, trailing 12-month (TTM) revenue, covering the past twelve consecutive months from November 2021 through October 2022, was $59.42bn. TTM revenue increased about one percent sequentially, i.e. compared to the preceding TTM period (October 2021-September 2022) reflecting the industry’s continuing expansion.
At the individual market level, 26 of 33 commercial gaming jurisdictions that were operational a year ago (excluding Arizona which has not reported October data) realized revenue growth compared to October 2021. Monthly gaming win contracted or remained flat in Delaware (-3.7 per cent), Maine (-2.8 per cent), Missouri (-4.7 per cent), New Jersey (-0.7 per cent), Ohio (-0.3 per cent) and Oklahoma (-0.4 per cent).
Through the first ten months of 2022, just three jurisdictions remain behind their gaming revenue pace compared to the same period in 2021: the District of Columbia (-9.2 per cent), Mississippi (-3.6 per cent) and South Dakota (-0.6 per cent). While D.C. revenue is sensitive to swings in the hold percentage of its small sports betting market, the slowdown in Mississippi and South Dakota largely reflects tougher than average comparisons as Covid-restrictions in those states were eased earlier in 2021 compared to most other gaming jurisdictions.
Nationwide revenue from land-based casino slot machines and table games combined to reach $4.03bn in October, an increase of 1.5 per cent over the same period last year. Slots generated revenue of $2.91bn, up 2.4 percent, while table game revenue increased 1.9 per cent to $846.9m. The separate slot and table game figures do not include data from Louisiana and Michigan, though their aggregates are captured by the combined nationwide figure.
October marked the first full month of operations for land-based casino slot gaming in Nebraska after it became America’s 27th commercial casino market on September 24. The state’s first commercial racino grossed about $4.3m in revenue, with monthly revenue per slot machine matching or outpacing many properties in nearby Iowa, Kansas and Missouri.
Year-to-date, casino slot machines and table games have grossed $39.97bn, 7.4 per cent ahead of the same ten-month period in 2021. At the state level, 21 of 25 commercial gaming states with slot and table gaming in 2021 saw combined revenue from these verticals grow through October.
A packed October sports calendar drove the highest level of betting activity since January as Americans in 27 legal commercial sports betting jurisdictions wagered $9.07bn on sports, generating $804.7 million in revenue. Figures exclude Arizona data, which had not reported October numbers at the time of publication.
Through October, annual US sports betting handle stands at $73.11bn, a 70 per cent increase from the same ten-month period in 2021 when 24 markets were live. Year-to-date sports betting revenue is $5.76bn, up 77.9 per cent year-over-year, while TTM revenue is $6.87bn, a sequential gain of 5.4 per cent.
Meanwhile, iGaming operations in Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia generated a combined monthly revenue record of $453.1m, up 26.8 per cent on the same month in 2021.
Year-to-date iGaming revenue stands at $4.08bn, up 38.1 per cent on the same period in 2021. TTM revenue is $4.71 bn, a 1.8 per cent gain on the preceding 12-month period.
