It was another record month for the six states that offer internet casino gaming as the combined gross revenue for the month of February reached $619.1 million.
That bettered the previous and short-lived standard of $590.4 million in December to close out 2023. It is the third time in four months there has been a new national monthly record for internet casino revenue, a run that started last November when operators combined to claim $557.2 million in winnings.
February’s record came despite only 29 days of available betting. While all six states reported year-over-year increases, Pennsylvania proved pivotal in setting another national record. The Keystone State’s $184.9 million in revenue eclipsed the previous record from November by $19.8 million.
State governments were able to levy taxes on $593.2 million in adjusted gross revenue, resulting in a combined inflow of $123.5 million in tax receipts into those respective coffers. The record revenue came despite a slight dip in known handle (New Jersey and Michigan do not publish handle figures in their monthly reports) from January to $7.55 billion.
‘Big 3’ separated by less than $6 million
Pennsylvania’s surprising bounce marked the first time three states crossed the $180 million benchmark in monthly revenue. Michigan also set an all-time high in February with $188 million, while New Jersey was pipped for second as its $182.3 million was less than $1 million from its all-time high set in January.
The Keystone State’s numbers got a huge boost from PENN National, which set what is believed to be a U.S. all-time monthly high at $77.3 million. PENN, which has DraftKings and BetMGM among its internet casino operators, reported a 36.8% year-over-year increase while besting its previous high-water mark by $12.4 million.
In Michigan, FanDuel was the big mover as it had an all-time high of $48.4 million in gross revenue, extending a run of growth that originated in the final months of 2022. The internet casino platform of MotorCity Casino, FanDuel topped $25 million for the first time in November 2022; crossed $30 million last March; surpassed $35 million in September, and topped $40 million in November before climbing over $45 million in February.
BetMGM also helped spur year-over-year growth by clearing $50 million in gross winnings for the first time since last April. The $1.8 million separating the two Detroit-based iGaming casinos, however, was the smallest between the two titans since digital casino wagering began in January 2021.
New Jersey had a four-month string of record revenue totals snapped, but just barely as year-over-year operator winnings were up 27.9%. It was the third consecutive month Garden State iGaming operators topped $180 million in adjusted gross revenue as five operators set all-time monthly highs.
Golden Nugget Casino — home to its own platform as well as FanDuel, BetRivers, and Betway — led all casino licensees with $51.5 million in AGR. It remains the only outfit in the Garden State to surpass $50 million in monthly winnings, doing so each of the last four months, but Resorts Digital again flirted with the benchmark. The home of DraftKings, Mohegan Sun, and its internal platform, the $48 million in February revenue was second only to the $49.2 million to start 2024.
New-look Delaware continues surge
Delaware, which switched platforms from 888 Casino to BetRivers at the beginning of the year, saw a record revenue haul for the second time in as many months with $4.3 million in gross winnings for February. Handle has ramped up dramatically — the $220.5 million in wagers through the first two months is nearly half the $446.6 million for all of 2023.
The duopoly that is Connecticut internet casino gaming — FanDuel and DraftKings — had its second-best month to date with $43.7 million in gross revenue, coming within $538,000 of December’s all-time high while topping $40 million for the third straight month.
West Virginia also saw operators combine for the second-highest revenue total in state history for February at $15.7 million. Mardi Gras Casino, the most recent entrant into the market, topped $100 million in drop in nine months after bettors wagered $11.3 million for the month.
March figures to be another month of record revenue as internet casino handle has historically ramped higher in tandem with increased sports betting activity that comes with the NCAA Tournament. Additionally, Rhode Island will have its first revenue report after Bally’s launched operations March 5.
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