PlayPennsylvania: Online Sportsbooks Rally, But Short by $275 Million, Online Casinos Soar

Published: 18/06/2020

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Play Pennsylvania, an online casino news outlet, reported the rise of retail and online sportsbooks in May. The report revealed that the sector recovered but still short of nearly $275 million in potential bets for the month. The industry’s unprecedented traffic was contributed by record numbers of gamblers turning to online casinos and poker rooms.

Google saw a significant increase in searches for terms related to online gambling during the government imposed lockdowns. Online gambling platforms worldwide reported an increase in the number of subscriptions and logins in their platforms. People searched for an alternative form of entertainment while they are trapped inside their homes.

Government all over the globe ordered establishments to shut down mid-March to help curve the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus. Major sports events were postponed or canceled while gambling facilities shutdown.

Because of the lockdowns, people relied on their gadgets and the internet for services and entertainment.

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Challenging months for the gambling industry

Duskin Gouker, the lead analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com, said that May was a challenging month for the country’s gambling industry. The analyst noted that the strong months for online casinos and poker rooms might come to an end soon after casinos started reopening their doors for their patrons.

Online casinos and virtual poker rooms led the industry in revenue during the lockdowns. However, new data revealed that casino reopening experienced heavy traffic, while sports betting is starting to gain momentum. Mr. Gouker said the entire gambling industry of Australia would travel a long road for recovery, but market figures encourage optimism.

PlayNJ revealed that online sportsbooks produced $77.5 million in wagers in May, increasing 68.4 percent from the previous month’s $46 million. The data noted that the state usually accumulates more than $350 million in wages for the whole sportsbooks sector. The online sportsbook gathered a gross revenue of $4.8 million and provided $1.6 million in taxes.

Valerie Cross, an analyst at PlayPennsylvania.com, mentioned that the return of sporting events could lead to the recovery of the industry, but it would take months for that to happen.

Leaders of the sports booking sector included FanDuel Sportsbook at Valley Forge Casino, handling $29.6 million in wages, and DraftKings at The Meadows, with $21.8 million.

Online Casinos, poker rooms surged

Online casinos and poker rooms rallied with an increase of 29.7 percent from $43.1 million in April to $55.9 million in May. The figure is triple of its February figure at $19.5 million. Online table games and slots revenue rose from $11.4 billion in April to $1.8 billion in May.

However, operators noted that they were still far from the $286.1 million revenue in May 2019.

Mr. Cross noted that online gaming income is not enough to cover the losses of land-based casinos during the reopening. The swarm of people during the reopening is a good sign for traditional casinos, but they still need to face the challenges brought by the “new normal.” Operators need to adapt to the changes the new safety and health guidelines bring to their properties.