Jackpot: Pa.’s monthly gambling revenue breaks $500M mark in March | Friday Morning Coffee

The first rule in gambling: The House always wins.

If you needed a reminder, look no further than Pennsylvania’s monthly revenue tally from gambling, which shattered the half-billion-dollar mark for the first time ever in March.

The $515.27 million in revenue from all forms of gambling, along with fantasy contests, online gaming and sports betting, was an 11.35% increase from March 2022, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, which has been keeping track of these numbers since legalized gambling began in 2006.

That’s up significantly from the $456.8 million in gambling revenue generated in February, an increase of 21.6% compared to the same month in 2022, the Capital-Star reported at the time.

Here’s a look at how that broke down, by venue:

The Hollywood Casino in Morgantown, Berks County charted the largest year-over-year increase, with revenue leaping from $5.6 million in March 2022 to $9.4 million ln March 2023, an increase of 66.8%.

It was trailed by the Hollywood Casino at the Meadows, in Washington County, which charted a nearly 52% year-over-year increase, with revenue jumping from $20.5 million in March 2022 to more than $31.1 million in March 2023, state data showed.

All told, the state collected $212.3 million in taxes off those revenues in March, according to the Gaming Control Board. Again, that’s an increase from the more than $188.9 million in tax revenue the state collected in February of this year, the Capital-Star reported.

And here’s a breakdown, from the Gaming Control Board, by the type of game:

Sports wagering charted the biggest month-over-month increase, growing by just shy of 66.6%, from $30.4 million in March 2022 to $50.6 million in March 2023, state data showed. That is also an increase from the $43.2 million in sports wagering revenue generated in February of this year, state data showed.