Pennsylvania’s regulated sports betting market saw handle grow beyond $300m for the first time in November, thanks to a soaring mobile contribution, while online casino benefitted from a leap in table games stakes.
Amounts wagered on sports across all channels amounted to $316.5m for November, a 31.2% improvement on the prior month, according to the figures from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. This was driven by online betting, which accounted for $266.7m, or 84.3%, of the total.
Retail’s contribution was also up month-on-month to $49.7m, though handle is growing at a slower rate than the state’s online market.
From these stakes, operators generated revenue of $20.6m, though with operators doling out promotional credits worth $5.9m to players, the total taxable revenue for the month stood at $14.7m, down marginally from October.
Looking at the performance of individual licensees, Valley Forge Casino, partnered with FanDuel, has raced far ahead of the competition, with stakes totalling $153.0m, up 29.6%. This was wagered almost entirely online, which accounted for $149.7m (97.9%) of the total.
From these stakes, Valley Forge held $5.8m as taxable revenue after promotional credits, the highest total of any licensee.
Coming in a distant second – in terms of amounts wagered at least – was Rivers Philadelphia, the property formerly known as SugarHouse Casino. Players wagered $41.3m through the property’s retail and mobile offerings.
However, higher player winnings resulted in a month-on-month decline in revenue, which fell 41.3% to $1.6m.
Parx Casino, despite total stakes of $30.5m giving it the fourth-largest handle, came in second in terms of total taxable revenue. Its $2.0m total after promotional credits set it ahead of the two Rush Street properties – Rivers Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
November also saw DraftKings, which finally entered the Pennsylvania sports betting market in October through a partnership with Meadows Casino, grow its presence. Amounts wagered jumped to $18.1m, from which it generated gross revenue of $1.4m.
Turning to Pennsylvania’s online casino market, amounts wagered playing online slots grew 19.4% to $140.3m, resulting in revenue climbing 28.1% to $5.1m. The table games vertical, however, was the standout performer, with stakes more than doubling month-over-month to $176.5m, which in turn lead to revenue leaping from $965,726 to $2.6m.
The month also saw the first contribution from online poker, with the first hand dealt on November 4. This generated an additional $2.0m in revenue, with Mount Airy – allied with The Stars Group – the only operator currently offering poker.
November also market Mount Airy’s first month of activity in online casino, alongside Mohegan Sun, which is working with Kindred Group.
Players wagered $10.8m on slots for Mount Airy, from which it generated revenue of $365,657, and $37.2m on table games, resulting in an additional $657,980 in revenue.
Mohegan Sun, meanwhile, reported stakes of $3.9m from slots, and $3.5m from table games, resulting in revenue of $32,359 and $36,242 respectively.
Leading the way in online casino was Rivers Philadelphia. Players wagered $64.2m on slots, from which it held $2.1m in gross revenue, and $84.5m from table games resulting in revenue of $1.1m. Penn National Gaming, followed in second for online slots, with $38.0m in stakes, and revenue of $1.7m.
However Parx came in second in terms of stakes and revenue from table games, with $32.1m wagered on interactive tables, and revenue of $605,375.
The growing contributions from online casino ($9.7m in total) and sports betting helped total gaming revenue in Pennsylvania rise 13.2% year-on-year to $292.1m. The bulk came from land-based slots, which accounted for $189.3m of the total – up 3.4% year-on-year – supported by $74.7m from table games.
A further $659,288 came from video gaming terminals (VGTs) located across 15 truck stops in the state, while the contribution from fantasy sports declined 8.0% from November 2018, to $3.0m.