- Pennsylvania gambling revenue was down 18% due to the coronavirus shutting down major casinos.
- Online sportsbooks and casinos managed to make up the bulk of the revenue acquired during the pandemic.
- Pennsylvania was the number 2 state for commercial casino revenue last year.
HARRISBURG, Pa.- Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Pennsylvania’s casino and gambling market has taken a major hit. The former No. 2 in the nation in casino gambling has seen an 18 percent loss in casino revenue this year.
All 12 of the Keystone State’s casinos were forced to be shut down due to the pandemic. The only form of regulated gambling that remained was online casinos and sportsbooks.
Online gambling managed to keep gambling revenue in the billions despite the major losses, further showing the power of regulated online gambling.
Casino Revenue In Pennsylvania
The online casino and sportsbook market was able to maintain some semblance of a gambling market in Pennsylvania during the coronavirus shutdowns.
Residents of the Keystone State were forced to get all of their gambling action online with all the major casinos closed down. Because of this, Pennsylvania’s revenue from all major gambling types has fallen drastically.
Revenue from both slots and table games went down by nearly 30% each, with slots being down $680 million and table games being down $240 million as reported by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.
Thankfully, online gambling raked in a combined $354 million between online casinos and sportsbooks.
Even with the successes of the USA online gambling market, the Keystone State still took major losses. Last year, PA was the second-largest gambling market in the nation taking in a record $3.3 billion in revenue. This year, however, the revenue has dropped 18% to $2.7 billion.
It is predicted that revenue will continue to remain low as the coronavirus continues to plague the nation.
Luckily, Pennsylvania gamblers have access to many online sportsbooks and casinos to keep them in the action. This will also help mitigate some of the tax revenues that were lost in previous months.