Pennsylvania online casinos made a record $1.3 billion in 2022, as the Keystone State continued to close the gap with neighboring New Jersey in terms of revenue in the vertical. Hollywood Casino also grabbed a more significant share of the market.
Online casino revenue was up 23% year-over-year ($1.1 billion), data from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) show. But the growth rate has slowed since the pandemic — the market more than doubled between 2020 ($529.3 million) and 2021.
The state’s 18 online casinos combined for a record $131.9 million in revenue in December 2022 — up 4.6% from the previous month and the former record high of $126.1 million, and up 33.2% from the same month a year ago.
When the PGCB published revenue figures for November last month, it became clear that Pennsylvania’s online casinos would generate more revenue in 2022 than in 2021.
PA Keeps Gaining on NJ, But Growth Slowing
Pennsylvania has been gaining on New Jersey in terms of online casino revenue for the past four years, but the rate at which it has been gaining has slowed.
The Keystone State had just $29.2 million in revenue from the vertical in 2019, compared to $461.8 million for New Jersey. At the time, revenue from online casinos in Pennsylvania equated to 6.3% of that made in New Jersey.
While revenue from the vertical has climbed in both states since 2019, revenue has been growing in Pennsylvania at a faster pace.
Pennsylvania generated the same 56.8% of the online casino revenue that New Jersey did in 2020. That share grew to 80.9% in 2021 and 84% in 2022.
New Jersey online casino revenue grew to $931.5 million in 2020, $1.3 billion in 2021, and $1.6 billion in 2022.
Hollywood Dominated Vertical in 2022
For the full year 2022, operators on the Hollywood Casino license — Barstool, BetMGM Casino PA, DraftKings Casino PA, and Hollywood Casino PA — led the field in terms of annual revenue from online casino gaming with $557.8 million.
The Hollywood group held nearly 42% of the market in 2022, compared to 38.5% the year prior. Annual revenue was up nearly 34% year-over-year ($416.5 million).
Operators on the Rivers-Philadelphia license — BetRivers Casino PA, Borgata Casino PA, SugarHouse Casino PA — were second in terms of annual revenue with $325.3 million, up 8.9% from 2021 ($298.6 million). The Rivers group accounted for about 24.5% of the market in 2022, down about three percentage points from a year earlier.
Valley Forge Casino’s online operators — FanDuel Casino PA and Stardust Casino —combined for $255.5 million in revenue in 2022, enough for third place on the annual list. Revenue increased over 34% from the previous year ($190.5 million), while market share improved from 17.6% in 2021 to 19.2% in 2022.
Other operators posted huge gains year-over-year.
Caesars Casino PA, which operates under the Harrah’s license, saw revenue increase 63.6% to $30.5 million in 2022, up from $18.6 million in 2021. Meanwhile, Betway and PlayLive! Casino — partners on the Live! Casino license — saw revenue more than triple to $33.1 million in 2022.
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Several Operators Hit Records in December
In December, the Hollywood group led with a record $59.7 million in revenue, up 7.9% month-over-month ($55.3 million). Rivers was second with $28.4 million, up 3.8% from November ($27.4 million), while Valley Forge was third after hitting a record $26.9 million, up 1.5% from the month before ($26.5 million).
Hollywood and Valley Forge weren’t the only operators with record revenue in December. Caesars hit a record $3.5 million, up 9.5% month-over-month ($3.2 million).
Parx Casino PA fell to $3.7 million in online casino revenue in December, its lowest mark since June ($2.9 million). Conversely, Live! Casino’s operators surged 61.6% month-over-month to $3.1 million in December, its highest mark since May ($3.2 million).
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