The gambling industry in Pennsylvania continued its growth streak last month with a record $602 million in taxable revenue across all segments, thanks in part to online casino and sports betting.
Total revenue was up 16% from last May.
Tax revenue from all forms of gaming surpassed $255 million, also a monthly record for the Commonwealth.
Online casinos lead the growth spurt
May’s gross online casino revenue was $292 million, up 35% year over year and just a couple million shy of the all-time record set in March. Tax revenue was $103 million, the third consecutive month reaching nine figures.
Growth since the inception of legal online casinos in Pennsylvania in late 2019 has been incredibly steady with no real signs of letting up:
- May 2020: $71.6 million
- May 2021: $114 million
- May 2022: $137 million
- May 2023: $170 million
- May 2024: $216 million
- May 2025: $292 million
The first $300-million month is on the horizon sometime this fall, perhaps as early as September.
Lifetime tax revenue from online casinos is now approaching $3.5 billion from total operator revenue that will cross $10 billion in June. The market has never posted a year-over-year decline in iGaming revenue for any month across nearly five years of comparative measurements.
Sports betting still inching upward
Pennsylvania sports betting growth is a bit more subdued but no less impressive given its relative state of maturity.
Handle of $655 million was also a May record, up 11% from last year. Gross revenue was even stronger on the back of a sturdy 11.6% hold, increasing 23% to $76.1 million.
FanDuel continues to perform exceptionally well in the local market, responsible for 40% of handle and 47% of revenue for the month.THe brand really flexes its muscles in the margins, recording a hold of 13.8% to lead that column too.
National number two DraftKings trails by a considerable distance, producing 26% of handle and 25% of revenue with a monthly hold matching the average across all operators. The two together reported $55.2 million in revenue and $16.1 million in tax payments.
BetMGM still leads the battle for third-place volume behind the leaders, but its position is not secure. It attracted a 7.6% handle share but only 4.6% of gross revenue in what is becoming a bit of a trend. Fanatics is the brand to watch these days, lurking in fourth place in handle (6.4%) but comfortably third in revenue share (7.1%) for three of the past four months.
Total tax revenue from May sports betting was $21.4 million.
Mixed results for PA casinos
Gaming revenue for brick-and-mortar casinos meanwhile increased 2.2% to $305 million, but the growth was not uniform. Slots revenue ticked up 5% to $225 million, while table games slipped by a similar amount to $79.9 million.
Only three properties showed a slight downturn in slots revenue – Hollywood Penn National, Harrah’s Philadelphia, and Presque Isle Downs.
Tax revenue from the month’s retail casino revenue was $127 million, just about half of the total gaming tax from all segments.
