The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), the gambling regulator in the state, released its latest report revealing the gambling revenue figures for September.
PGCB Reveals Gambling Revenue Figures
Judging by the data released by the PGCB, September was another strong month for licensed gambling operators in Pennsylvania. The growth of revenue was primarily driven by an increase in sports betting and online gambling revenue. In total, the gambling revenue last month hit $448,475,624. When compared to the same period in 2021, this result represented an increase of 7.89%.
What’s more, September marked the third month in a row with gambling revenues surpassing the $400 million mark. The gambling regulator explained that the $448.5 million in gambling revenue includes table games, slot machines, as well as sports betting, fantasy contests and video gaming terminals (VGTs).
Not unexpectedly, the increase in gambling revenue increased taxes. Overall, in September, Pennsylvania collected $182.1 million in tax revenue from all forms of gambling. This marked an increase when compared to the $175.3 million in taxes collected a month earlier, in August. More importantly, the $182.1 million in taxes marked a nearly 8% increase when compared to the $169.1 million in taxes reported in September last year.
Sports Betting, Online Gambling Boost Revenue Last Month
A breakdown provided by the PGCB reveals that the gambling revenue in September was primarily pushed by an increase in sports betting and online gambling activities. Retail slots revenue in September hit $198.5 million, down 0.18% when compared to September 2021, while retail tables revenue halted at $81.6 million, down 2.94% when compared to the same period last year.
In contrast, sports wagering revenue this September soared to $50.2 million, up 77.74% when compared to September 2021. The sports betting handle reported last month increased as well. Licensed sportsbooks reported $645.2 million in betting handle for September, up 11.49% year-over-year.
Another strong increase was observed in iGaming tables revenue. When compared to September 2021, this year, iGaming tables revenue increased by 22.15% to $32.2 million. iGaming slot revenue performed well too last month after reaching $77.9 million, up 13.61% from the $68.6 million reported last year in September. VGTs’ revenue last month increased by 2.66% to $3.5 million.
While most of the online gambling revenue increased, this was not the case for iGaming poker revenue. Last month, iGaming poker revenue decreased to $2.7 million, down by 9.06% year-over-year. Last but not least, fantasy contests revenue plummeted in September. In September 2021, fantasy contests revenue hit $3.2 million, while this year, it decreased by 41.27% to $1.9 million.