Casinos in the U.S. earned a record-setting $66.5 billion. Which means gamblers lost big.
According to The American Gaming Association, 2023 was the best year for the industry. The total money won
at casinos in 2022 was $60.5 billion. This year, it surpassed that total by 10%. It was the third straight year that the numbers have risen for the industry.“From the traditional casino experience to online options,
American adults’ demand for gaming is at an all-time high,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller in a written statement. “Sustaining our momentum will take unified industry efforts around combating pernicious illegal operators and growing responsible gambling efforts in tandem with the growth of the legal market—both of which the AGA is committed to lead on throughout 2024.”The numbers for 2023 were highlighted by an all-time high quarterly revenue of $17.4 billion that was taken in the last quarter of the year. There was $6.2 billion in revenue in December alone, making it the highest-grossing month in industry history.
With online gaming becoming almost a quarter of the revenue at 24.7%, the commercial gaming industry is seeing dramatic growth.
More than half (12) of the top 20 commercial casino gaming markets reported revenue growth in 2023. The Las Vegas Strip, repeating as the top market in the U.S., comes out ahead of New Jersey
, securing second place for another year. This year, Chicago came in third place, flipping positions with this year’s No. 4, the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. market. Rounding out the top five is the Mississippi Gulf Coast.“Gaming’s success translates directly to the success of the states, cities, and towns in which we operate,” Miller said. “We are proud to be in 47 U.S. jurisdictions, acting as economic drivers, creating jobs, and providing the funding that makes critical public education programs, infrastructure projects, problem gambling resources, and more possible.”
States benefit from revenue brought by the gambling industry. Last year, commercial gaming operators paid approximately $14.4 billion in direct gaming revenue taxes, an increase of 9.7% from the previous year.
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