Tony Cutillo 
The commercial gambling industry in the United States is growing constantly. This February, revenue expanded 9% compared to the previous year, marking 36 months of consecutive growth. Total revenue for the first two months of 2024 was $11.46 billion, up 6.8% from last year’s results, which also marked a record high.
After revenues fell 5.9% in January, revenues from land-based casinos rebounded in February. The comeback was driven by strong table game performance. So, for the period, table games and retail sports betting generated $4.16 billion, a 3.7% increase from the following year.
The interesting new kids on the block are sports betting and igaming (online casinos).
- Sports betting is now legal in 38 US states, plus Washington DC.
- iGaming (online casino games) is legal in 7 US states.
- Americans bet in February $10.49 billion, up 24.8% year-on-year.
- Sportsbooks generated more than $827 million in revenue for February.
- Year-to-date commercial sports betting revenue was $2.31 billion, up 32.1% year-on-year.
- Year-to-date igaming revenue was $1.26 billion, up 25.7% year-on-year.
The more mature, traditional casino segments, including land-based slot-machine cabinets and physical table games (e.g., roulette, blackjack, etc.), remain the most dominant revenue generators of the commercial gaming industry in the US. In February, these verticals accounted for revenues of $4.13 billion, up 4% from the previous corresponding period. Slot machines generated most of this revenue at $2.91 billion for the period, up 1.8%, while table game revenues traditionally fulfilled a smaller portion of the total share at $916.2 million. However, table games showed a significant increase year-over-year, jumping up 12.8% from the previous period.
Ziv Chen, contributing writing to “The Solitaire” said: “Physical, land-based slot cabinets have always been the flagship of commercial gambling in America and beyond and will continue to be the major driver of revenues for many years to come. However, although the total numbers are still huge in proportion to other segments (e.g., igaming and sports betting), the growth in percentages is much lower. This is natural for a more mature product in the market.”
In January, igaming revenues in the US broke a record, generating $648 million, an increase of 30.9% year-over-year, with all six legal states showing an increase, led by New Jersey with $559.1 million, followed by Pennsylvania with $215.3 million, and Michigan with $188 million. Year-to-date revenues for igaming were $1.26 billion, up 25.7% from the previous corresponding period. These numbers are still missing Rhode Island, which is the latest regulated state.
With strong growth in the gambling sector, which keeps going year to year, it is worth looking at gambling stock that combines both traditional commercial gaming, as well as igaming and sports betting. For example, MGM Resorts International [NYSE: MGM], main stakeholder and operator of BetMGM, Caesars Entertainment [NASDAQ: CZR], owner of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, and Rush Street Gaming, owner of the digital arm Rush Street Interactive.
SOURCE www.rizeandreactmedia.com
