The U.S. commercial gaming industry, led by nine states setting all-time quarterly highs, reported a quarterly record at $14.8 billion and is on pace for a second consecutive yearly record, according to the American Gaming Association.
The second-quarter record number beat the previous record set in the fourth quarter of 2021 by 3.3%, the AGA reported.
With $29.16 billion generated through the first half of the year, a nearly 18 percent year-over-year increase, 2022 is on pace to set a new annual record for commercial gaming revenue for the second consecutive year, the AGA said.
“Q2’s results mark a 16-month period of gains for commercial gaming,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “With increasingly difficult year-over-year comparisons, our strength through the first half of 2022 reflects sustained consumer demand for legal options, as well as gaming’s record popularity.”
The industry’s growth rate softened throughout the second quarter, with the pace of monthly year-over-year gains slowing from 13.1 percent in April to 10.7 percent in May and 2.5 percent in June, the report said. That demonstrates stabilizing consumer demand and the return to normal gaming operations one year ago.
“While on pace to set an annual revenue record, we are cognizant of the continued impacts of inflation and labor challenges, as well as marketplace concerns of potential recession,” said Miller. “Our members have proven their agility and resilience over the last two years and are well positioned to face these potential headwinds heading into the second half.”
Twenty-two of the 31 commercial gaming jurisdictions operating during the same period last year experienced revenue increases in the second quarter of 2022. Nine states reported all-time quarterly highs: Arkansas, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Pennsylvania, the report said.
Traditional casino gaming continued to drive the industry’s success, with both brick-and-mortar slots and table games showing quarterly revenue records. While slot machine revenue was up a mere 0.2 percent year over year, revenue from table games jumped 18.2 percent, indicating the lingering impact that COVID restrictions had on table games in the first half of 2021, according to the AGA.
In the first six months of the year, traditional casino gaming generated $23.67 billion in revenue, 11.7 percent ahead of the first half of 2021.
The sports-betting sector also continues to grow. Consumer demand, coupled with six new state market launches over the last year, put the vertical up 58.7 percent from the second quarter of 2021. The $3.04 billion in sports betting revenue thus far in 2022 is a 63.9 percent year-over-year increase, the AGA reported.
Meanwhile, the six operational U.S. igaming markets generated $1.21 billion in the second quarter, narrowly beating the vertical’s previous record set in the first quarter of 2022. With the addition of one market, the $2.42 billion in commercial igaming revenue generated through June is a 43.5 percent jump over the same period in 2021, the vertical’s highest-grossing year.
AGA’s second-quarter commercial-gaming revenue report comes on the heels of the National Indian Gaming Commission’s announcement that tribal operators generated an all-time high of $39 billion in gaming revenue in fiscal year 2021. Combined with commercial gaming’s $53 billion in revenue, 2021 beat the previous record held in 2019 by 13 percent.
“Tribal gaming demonstrated its responsible leadership throughout the pandemic and these record results reflect that commitment,” concluded Miller. “The full recovery and ongoing success of tribal casinos go well beyond the casino floor to support vibrant communities across the country.”
