Pennsylvania Online Casinos Thriving in Latest Market Forecast

Credit: Bmmagazine.co.uk

The USA’s online gambling market is expected to grow at a projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15.41% in the next five years. That’s despite the fact that only four states permit all forms of online gambling: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia.

Pennsylvania recently turned a page on its first year of regulating online gambling and by all indications, it was a success. The iGaming revenue for operators in the state surpassed $240 million.

The numbers surged especially towards the end of June and beginning of July when the coronavirus took its toll on brick-and-mortar casinos. About $50 million was collected in June. However, even as land-based casinos start reopening, revenue from online casinos remains high.

The Main Factors for Growth

PA’s online gambling growth boils down to a few significant factors. The main one is the recent shutdown of brick-and-mortar casinos. Online casinos were the only option for a few months.

Secondly, there was a steady increase in new brands. They are valuable additions to the online gambling market in Pennsylvania. When online gambling first became legal in the state, players only had three options: SugarHouse, Hollywood, and Parx. They now have many more options. The launch of FanDuel Casino, PokerStars, and DraftKings Casino gave the online gambling market a major boost.

Another factor for growth is that the industry has had the time to experience natural growth. When something new comes to the market, consumers may need some time to understand and warm up to it. The same can be said about PA’s legal online casinos. Online casinos have now grown organically to become the backbone of the state’s gaming industry.

A Revenue Breakdown for PA’s Online Gambling Market

Pennsylvania’s online gambling market has come a long way in slightly over a year. The state started with only three online casinos but it now has a dozen. Many of the new licenses have already cracked $1 million in monthly revenue. The three original ones have now increased their revenue significantly. 

You can find a comprehensive PA online casino list at bestonlinecasino.com. This website ranks PA’s best gaming operators by their ratings and bonuses. It also provides helpful guides for people who want to get started with iGaming.

That said, Pennsylvania’s online poker sector is a one-horse race: PokerStars. Fortunately, it is still earning more than double of its income for the first months of the year. There are signs that it may soon face competition from WSOP, Partypoker, or both. The competition will be great for the industry.

The Revenue from PA’s Online Sports

The total revenue from PA’s sports betting is about $18.3 million. The revenue from retail sports betting is $5.1 million, and the revenue from online sports betting is $13.2 million.

September was the month when Pennsylvania sports betting experienced a decline. The take for retail sportsbook had increased from $2.8 million to $5.1 million but it was quickly erased by the decline of online revenue from $24.8 million to $13.2 million.

 The decline came as a surprise. The start of the NFL season and the final stages of the NBA playoffs were expected to help the sports betting industry. While sports betting increased in Pennsylvania, online bettors simply made better picks. Online handle increased 29% to $414 million, more than double the rise in retail betting.     

In August, however, the share of the books reduced to a mere 3.2% from 7.7%.  Experts expect a rebound since the hold in August was normal but it went abnormally low in September. There should be a significant leap over the next few months.

The Highlights

Here is what the online gambling trends in Pennsylvania looked like in numbers by September 2020:

• The online revenue from casino games, slots, and poker hit a total of $57,041,936 in September, a significant rise from $55,942,525 in August
• The online gambling sites produced more than $24 million in local and state tax revenue for the month
• The difference in the two biggest licensees reduced from 31% to nine percent.

Even though the online gambling market in PA is young, it has only booked one monthly loss so far. The state experienced its first loss in June when land casinos started reopening after the COVID-19 breakdown. However, the revenue has resumed growing slowly.

Five of the nine license holders in the state had a revenue increase in September and the other four registered a slight slip. Penn National experienced the highest increase in revenue especially on its slots and table games.

Slot revenue increased by 10%. On the other hand, the income for table games increased by a whopping 59%. Penn Casino has two skins: DraftKings and Hollywood Casino. DraftKings is responsible for most of the gains as it focuses on table games more than most of the other online casinos.

Games That Bring In the Money

The games that bring in the most money in the Pennsylvania online gambling market include:

• Casino table games
• Poker
• Roulette
• Slots
• Fantasy betting
• Horse race betting

They are all regulated by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB). It is a governmental agency that was founded to serve as the licensing and regulatory agency in the state.

In conclusion, Pennsylvania’s online casinos have been thriving and they are expected to keep growing in the coming months. Just in September, the online casino games earned gross revenue of over $57 million. Online slots accounted for over $39.9 million of that total and online table games generated $14.7 million.

In August, online table games generated slightly under $13.6 million and online slot games accounted for $39.6 million. In July, the state marked a full year of nearly uninterrupted revenue growth.

Online gambling experienced its first loss in June when land-based casinos reopened. Fortunately, that has proven to be nothing but a minor blip. In July, the trend started going upwards again. This rise can be attributed to three main factors:

• Entry of new, more attractive operators in the market
• Organic growth of the industry
• The COVID-19 economic shutdown that forced casino lovers into the online space

Even though the shutdown issue has resolved itself, the others are still present, and they still play a major role in the online gambling industry.