Operator News
US – Pennsylvania’s online sportsbooks up 68.4 per cent in May
By Phil - 17 June 2020
Pennsylvania’s retail and online sportsbooks rose in May, but lost out on about $275m in potential bets in May, according to PlayPennsylvania estimates, while gamblers again turned to online casinos and poker rooms in record numbers.
“May was another challenging month for Pennsylvania’s gaming industry, but it appears that it will be the last month of online casinos and poker rooms being the only bearer of good news,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “The casinos that have recently reopened appear to be experiencing relatively strong traffic, and sports bettors are finding increasingly more to bet on. Recovery for the entire industry will be a long road, but there are reasons for optimism.”
Online sportsbooks generated $77.5m in wagers in May, up 68.4 per cent from April’s $46m handle, according to official data released Tuesday. But Pennsylvania sportsbooks would have accepted more than $350m in a more typical May, according to PlayNJ.
May’s handle yielded $4.8 million in gross revenue, up from $3.2m in April, and $1.6m in state taxes.
“A normal menu of sports would likely mean an almost instant recovery for online sportsbooks, though we may still be a few months from that happening,” said Valerie Cross, analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “Pennsylvania’s online sportsbooks have been savvy in keeping their customers engaged with sports well outside the mainstream. That will only help when things begin to return to normal.”
FanDuel Sportsbook at Valley Forge Casino once again topped the market with a May handle of $29.6m, up from $19m in April. Those bets fueled $2.5m in taxable revenue, up from $1.3m. DraftKings at The Meadows generated a $21.8m handle, up from $12.6m.
Online casinos and poker rooms set a fresh record with $55.9m in gross revenue, Up 29.7 per cent from $43.1m in April and nearly triple from $19.5m in February.
A remarkable $1.8bn was bet on online table games and slots in May — up from $1.4bn in April. Operators, though, were still out of the $286.1m land-based casinos generated in May 2019.
“As welcome as the online revenue has been, it can’t come close to replacing what was lost with the shutdown of land-based casinos,” Cross said. “So far early signs are good for Pennsylvania’s land-based casinos, but they are still navigating diminished capacity and uncertain demand as they reopen. For that reason, online casino games and poker will remain critical in bridging revenue gaps as Pennsylvania casinos recover.”
Rivers-Philadelphia led the online casino market with $17.6m in revenue on $641.3m in wagers, up from $13.7m in revenue on $477m in wagers in April. DraftKings enjoyed a strong debut of its online casino under the Penn National license. After launching on May 1, DraftKings helped boost Penn National to $9m in revenue on $313.4m in wagers from $4.6m in revenue and $122.2m in wagers in April.
“DraftKings’ online casino is a well-designed product, and bettors obviously reacted positively,” Gouker said. “FanDuel and DraftKings are the dominant players in the state, and their dominance will only grow as their online casinos grow and sports betting returns.”
Caption: Rivers-Philadelphia led the online sports betting market in Pennsylvania
