Pennsylvania casino slots revenue underwent a small contraction in 2016, while the Parx Casino in Philadelphia maintained its grip atop the individual casino leader board.
Figures released Thursday by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) show the state’s 12 casinos generated overall slots revenue of $2.36b in 2016. While that’s 0.23% ($5.5m) less than the casinos earned in 2015 and well below the 2012 peak of $2.47b, 2016’s total did maintain the state’s six-year run of slots revenue topping $2.3b.
As stated, Parx led all comers with $389.8m in slots take, up 2.84% from 2015. The next closest competitor, Las Vegas Sands’ Sands Bethlehem, was up 1.8% year-on-year to $305m. Rivers Casino ranked third ($265m, -4.3%), while the Meadows ($221.6m +0.6%) narrowly beat out Mohegan Sun Pocono ($216.2m, flat) for fourth place.
Seven casino operators were in negative slots territory for the year, but the government continued to make out like a bandit, thanks to its industry-high 54% slots tax. The government’s share of the slots take came to $1.26b.
The 2016 slots take might have eked out a small year-on-year gain but for December’s monthly total falling 6.2% to $185.3m. Only two casinos – Philadelphia’s SugarHouse and the Valley Forge Casino Resort – enjoyed positive slots growth in December.
It remains to be seen whether the state’s thriving casino table games will be able to drive an overall casino revenue gain in 2016. The state won’t release its 2016 table game numbers until later this month, but 2015’s table game tally was up 7.8% over 2014, a much bigger bump that 2015’s 2% slots boost.
Pennsylvania’s gaming industry is bracing for some seismic changes in 2017, including new proposals to authorize the state’s casinos to offer online versions of their slots and table games. The state is also wrestling with how to resolve the local community host fee that state courts struck down last summer as unconstitutional, as well as considering authorizing mobile gaming at international airports and daily fantasy sports.
