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PlayPennsylvania.com: Sportsbooks gain in March, online casinos shatter records

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4 years ago

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Pennsylvania’s retail and online sportsbooks took in more than $560 million in wagers, as March Madness helped spur betting to the second-highest monthly volume in state history, according to PlayPennsylvania, which analyzes and researches the state’s regulated online gaming and sports betting market. Sports betting was just one piece of good news in March, as the Keystone State set a fresh record for online casino revenue while the state’s sportsbooks crossed $500 million in lifetime gross gaming revenue.

“March’s results show just how important the NCAA Tournament can be in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, giving a huge boost to sportsbooks at a time when football is dormant,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “With last year’s tournament canceled, sportsbooks were left a revenue hole that they could not fill. Pennsylvania itself was a bit of an unknown, since the last time the NCAA Tournament was held online sports betting had yet to launch. This really sets sportsbooks up for a strong rest of the year, especially in comparison with 2020.”

For the month, Pennsylvania’s online and retail sportsbooks collected $560.3 million in bets, according to official data released Thursday evening. That was up 326.6% from $131.3 million in March 2020, a month marred by the shutdown of major sports in the U.S., including the NCAA Tournament. The month represented a rebound from February’s $509.6 million handle, even as it fell short of the record $615.3 million handle in January.

Sportsbooks did well on March’s bets, too, producing $41 million in gross gaming revenue — up 376.7% from $8.6 million in March 2020. That yielded $29.4 million in taxable revenue, up 326.1% from $6.9 million a year ago. The revenue produced in March created $10 million in state taxes and $587,047 in local share assessment.

Pennsylvania sportsbooks have now generated $506.7 million in gross gaming revenue since launching, reaching yet another impressive lifetime milestone.

Pennsylvania is the first to report of the four largest sports betting markets. New Jersey should remain the top market, but Pennsylvania could feasibly pass Nevada for No. 2 in the U.S., or Pennsylvania could be passed by Illinois, which continues to gain ground.

“$500 million in gross gaming revenue is a threshold reached by only two other markets, Nevada and New Jersey, a sign of Pennsylvania’s increasingly mature market,” said Valerie Cross, analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com. “Regardless of where Pennsylvania finds itself in the state rankings, it is in an excellent position as online betting gains steam and retail sportsbooks find themselves with fewer pandemic-related restrictions.”

Online sports betting produced 91.8%, or $514.3 million, of March’s handle. The percentage is down from 92.2% of February’s handle. FanDuel Sportsbook/Valley Forge Casino topped the market again with $202.8 million in online wagering, up from $176.3 million in February. Those bets produced $10.4 million in taxable revenue, up from $7.3 million in February. DraftKings/The Meadows was second with $116.6 million in bets, up from $111.7 million in February, yielding $6 million in taxable revenue.

The Barstool-branded Penn National/Hollywood Casino app is still trying to gain ground, generating $63.6 million in March, easily No. 3 in the state but down from $65.6 million in February. That produced $3.3 million in revenue.

The leaders were followed by:

  • BetMGM/Hollywood Morgantown ($37.4 million handle, up from $33.7 million; $1.7 million in taxable revenue, down from $2 million)
  • BetRivers/Rivers-Pittsburgh ($24.8 million handle, up from $20.4 million; $1.3 million revenue, down from $1.4 million)
  • Parx Casino ($18.7 million handle, up from $17.7 million; $1.2 million revenue, down from $1.6 million)
  • Fox Bet/Mount Airy ($17.5 million handle, down from $18 million; $911,248 million revenue down from $1.3 million)
  • PlaySugarHouse/Rivers-Philadelphia ($17.2 million handle, up from $14.6 million; $912,183 in revenue, up/down from $957,245)
  • Unibet/Mohegan Sun Pocono ($10.2 million handle, up from $7.5 million; $272,627 revenue, down from $416,533)
  • Betfred/Wind Creek ($2.2 million handle, down from $1.7 million; -$186,870 revenue, down from $50,386)
  • Caesars/Harrah’s ($1.7 million handle, up from $1.1 million; $136,078 revenue, up from $3,541)
  • TwinSpires/Presque Isle Downs ($1.4 million handle, up from $1.3 million; -$14,229 revenue, down from $5,496)

Retail sportsbooks generated $45.9 million in handle, up from $39.8 million in February. Sportsbooks won $3.4 million on February’s bets. The top retail sportsbook was Rivers-Philadelphia with $7 million in bets, edging Parx Casino’s $6.9 million.

“The Penn National-Barstool partnership has been successful, but its gains on the market leaders has stalled,” Gouker said. “FanDuel and DraftKings have built so much brand recognition and marketing might that they still hold advantages over a brand as well-known as Barstool partnering with a Pennsylvania-based company.”

Online casinos and poker

Online casinos and poker rooms hit a fresh high in March with $97.7 million in taxable revenue, shattering the record $80.4 million set in January. Online casinos generated a per day revenue record, too, producing $3.2 million in revenue per day for the 31 days in March, which was up from the previous high of $2.8 million per day over the 28 days in February.

Year-over year, revenue is up 292.4% from $24.9 million from March 2020, a month that marks the beginning of a year-long surge that continues today. Online casino wagering has grown 275% to $3.3 billion from $871.6 million in March 2020.

“The year-over-year gains in revenue are staggering,” Cross said. “The pandemic-related shutdowns of the state’s retail casinos changed bettor behavior for the foreseeable future. This is evident as online casino gaming keeps setting records, even as brick-and-mortar restrictions are eased.”

Highlights from March:

  • March’s revenue yielded $22.6 million in state taxes and another $13.3 million in local share assessments and county grants.
  • Penn National, which includes the DraftKings, BetMGM, and Hollywood casinos, led the market with $33.6 million in revenue on $.11 billion in wagers. Rivers-Philadelphia, which includes PlaySugarHouse and BetRivers casinos, was second with $27.1 million in revenue on $668.2 million in wagers.
  • Mount Airy/PokerStars, the lone poker operator in the state, generated poker revenue of $2.4 million.

For more information on the revenue generated by Pennsylvania, visit www.playpennsylvania.com/revenue.

About the PlayUSA.com Network:

The PlayUSA.com Network is a leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the United States. With a presence in over a dozen states, PlayUSA.com and its state-focused branches produce daily original reporting, publish in-depth research, and offer player advocacy tools related to the advancement of safe, licensed, and legal online gaming options for consumers. Based in Las Vegas, the PlayUSA Network is independently owned and operated, with no affiliations to any casino — commercial, tribal, online, or otherwise.

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BetVictor

BetVictor Canada launches Tracy McGrady Safer Gambling campaign

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4 days ago

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March 31, 2025

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BetVictor Canada has launched its new out-of-home advertising campaign across the streets of Toronto to promote NBA legend Tracy McGrady as its Safer Gambling Ambassador.

Two mobile digital trucks strategically targeting high-traffic areas near Scotiabank Arena, Rogers Centre, and major sporting events will provide prime audience exposure for the campaign, scheduled around Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, and Toronto Blue Jays home games.

To further enhance the campaign’s reach, BetVictor Canada has partnered with Clear Media Group to leverage digital taxi tops across Toronto, providing city-wide exposure with 100 taxis displaying key brand messaging. These digital taxi tops will run during peak evening hours (5:00pm – 9:00pm) on select dates until April 5th, 2025.

The campaign coincides with Problem Gambling Awareness Month, a nationwide grassroots campaign held each March that seeks to increase public awareness of problem gambling and promote prevention, treatment, and recovery services.

BetVictor Canada offers an array of tools and services to help its Canadian customers bet and play safely and responsibly, across a host of sports betting markets and online casino games.

Mark Harper, Head of Emerging Markets at BV Group, said: “BetVictor is delighted to be participating in the National Council of Problem Gambling campaign in March, to help increase public awareness of problem gambling and the need to promote prevention, treatment and recovery services.

“In using our Safer Gambling Ambassador, Tracy McGrady, to raise awareness about BetVictor’s safer gambling tools such as loss limits, time alerts and product restrictions we are dedicated to ensuring all players have a safe gambling experience. #PGAM2025.”

The post BetVictor Canada launches Tracy McGrady Safer Gambling campaign appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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AGCO

AGCO issues $110,000 in penalties to BetMGM Canada for offering cash to induce new gambling customers

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4 days ago

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March 31, 2025

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The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has served BetMGM Canada Inc. with an Order of Monetary Penalty (OMP) of $110,000 for violations of the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming.

In two separate incidents in 2024, BetMGM engaged marketing companies who offered cash to members of the public in return for opening new BetMGM accounts. The marketing activities occurred in public forums, such as a major national trade conference. Under AGCO’s Standards, operators are responsible for the conduct of their third-party suppliers who are contracted to support the operator’s Ontario gaming business, and must require their third-parties to meet Ontario laws, regulations and standards (Standard 1.19).

Ontario is one of the first jurisdictions in the world to establish and enforce rules that strictly limit high-risk inducement advertising and marketing in the online gambling industry. Registered iGaming operators are prohibited from offering gambling inducements, bonuses and credits as part of their broad public advertising and marketing activities (Standard 2.05). These Standards exist to protect Ontarians from predatory advertising and promotional marketing practices in order to limit the risk of gambling-related harm.

A registered operator served with an OMP by the AGCO has the right to appeal the Registrar’s decision to the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), which is an adjudicative tribunal independent of the AGCO and part of Tribunals Ontario.

QUOTE

“Responsible gambling safeguards and the protection of Ontarians on registered gaming sites is among our key priorities. The AGCO monitors the activities of all registered operators and their third-party suppliers to ensure they are meeting our high standards and we continue to take strong action to ensure they operate within the public interest.”

Dr. Karin Schnarr, Chief Executive Officer and Registrar – AGCO

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

BetMGM Canada Inc. failed to comply with the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming. Specifically, the licensee failed to comply with the following provisions of the Standards:

  • 1.19 Operators are responsible for the actions of third parties with whom they contract for the provision of any aspect of the Operator’s business related to gaming in Ontario and must require the third party to conduct themselves in so far as they carry out activities on behalf of the operator as if they were bound by the same laws, regulations, and standards.
  • 2.05 Advertising and marketing materials that communicate gambling inducements, bonuses and credits are prohibited, except on an operator’s gaming site and through direct advertising and marketing, after receiving active player consent.

Contrary to the Standards, BetMGM Canada Inc. and/or their affiliates allegedly engaged in the following activities:

a) On or about January 13 and 14, 2024, BetMGM representatives were alleged to have attended the National Franchise Show and were offering $100 in cash to new players for opening a new account and depositing $15.
b) On or about March 11, 2024, BetMGM acknowledged that its marketing affiliate “Above the Street” had engaged in prohibited inducement marketing. The conduct resulted in 377 player sign-ups and $127,180.00 in commissions to “Above the Street”.
c) On or about April 13, 2024, another BetMGM marketing affiliate “Maple Leaf Marketing” engaged in prohibited inducements and marketing to induce on-site activations and acquire new players. The conduct resulted in 94 player sign-ups and about $34,000.00 in commissions paid to “Maple Leaf Marketing”.

The post AGCO issues $110,000 in penalties to BetMGM Canada for offering cash to induce new gambling customers appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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BCLC

BCLC Launches “What’s played here stays here” Campaign

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1 week ago

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March 27, 2025

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BCLC’s new “What’s played here stays here” campaign is issuing an important reminder to British Columbians who choose to gamble – specifically that all net profit its operations generate stays in B.C. to help fund critical services like education, health care and community programs.

The campaign also reinforces that all other gambling websites operating in B.C. are illegal and take away funds from critical community programs and services.

“Across B.C. and Canada, we’ve seen incredible groundswell around the importance of buying and supporting local, and that’s no different for British Columbians who choose gambling for their entertainment. We want our B.C. players to know they can find a world-class gambling experience in their own backyard, whether it’s at one of our 33 casinos, 3,400 lottery retailers, or online at PlayNow.com, and that the proceeds from their play with BCLC make a positive impact at home in their community,” Pat Davis, President and CEO of BCLC, said.

Along with illegal online gambling websites, BCLC also competes with Washington State and Las Vegas casinos, all of which aggressively market to B.C. residents.

“BCLC continues to raise awareness that these gambling options do not support B.C.’s economy and take away funds from vital provincial and community-based programs and services. In a time when British Columbians are standing united, we want to reinforce that playing together with BCLC helps make B.C. even better,” Pat Davis added.

The post BCLC Launches “What’s played here stays here” Campaign appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.

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