Online Casino Sector Surges 31.3% Year-over-Year, Propelling Overall Gaming Revenue Up by 10.7%

Philadelphia – Pennsylvania's gaming industry experienced a significant surge in April, recording a total revenue of $558.7 million, marking a substantial 10.7% increase compared to the same month last year. This impressive growth was primarily driven by the explosive performance of the online casino (iGaming) sector.

According to data released by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), online casino revenue in April surpassed $227.7 million, representing a robust 31.3% year-over-year increase. This marks the second-highest monthly revenue record in the history of Pennsylvania's online casino segment. Within the iGaming sector, online slot machines led the charge with $169.5 million, showing a solid 34.5% growth, while online table games also performed strongly, bringing in $55.9 million, up 24.2%.

 
iGaming Market: Key Operators Lead the Way

Among Pennsylvania's iGaming operators, Hollywood Casino at Penn National saw the most significant benefit, reporting $83.2 million in revenue for April, a 33.5% increase year-over-year. Valley Forge Casino Resort also posted substantial gains, with revenues of $66.7 million, up 38.8% from the previous year. Rivers Casino Philadelphia followed with a 17.1% increase, reaching $35.9 million. Notably, Golden Nugget recorded the highest percentage increase in profit, a remarkable 116.4%, with $7.7 million in digital revenue.

In January, the PGCB announced that iGaming revenue for 2024 had exceeded $2.18 billion, a 25.25% increase compared to 2023. With April's impressive year-over-year online gaming performance, there's continued optimism that 2025 will surpass last year's total.

 
Online Poker Sees Decline, But Opportunity for Rebound

In contrast, online poker revenue continued a several-month-long decline, dropping by 2.8% to just $2.3 million. However, this downturn is likely to be reversed as Pennsylvania officially joined the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) last month. Pennsylvania now participates in MSIGA alongside five other states: New Jersey, Nevada, Delaware, West Virginia, and Michigan, enabling interstate online poker play which can attract more players and generate larger prize pools. In fact, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed the MSIGA agreement on April 23, 2025, allowing multi-state poker games to commence on April 28, starting with BetMGM and PA Borgata Online.

 
Retail and Sports Betting Sectors Show Mixed Results

Retail slot machines in land-based casinos remain the largest single gaming segment, with April's monthly revenue hitting $203.1 million. However, this represents a 1.2% decrease compared to April 2024, attributed to a reduction of over 500 operating machines year-over-year, bringing the total to 24,363.

Conversely, the table games sector in brick-and-mortar casinos saw a slight uptick, reporting $80.6 million in revenue, a 2.8% increase from last April. The biggest success in this segment was Wind Creek Bethlehem, which earned $24 million, up 9.6% year-over-year. Rivers Pittsburgh followed, securing second place with $13.4 million.

Pennsylvania's sports betting market showed minimal growth, with total revenue reaching $42.5 million, an annual increase of just 0.2%. However, the total handle (total wagers) increased by 10.1% to $711.6 million, with $677.9 million of that being bet online.

The partnership between Valley Forge Casino and FanDuel continues to lead the online sports betting segment. FanDuel generated $20.1 million from a total handle of $269.8 million. DraftKings, operating through Hollywood Casino, came in second, recording $12.1 million from a total handle of $185.6 million.

Other categories included in the PGCB results show fantasy sports contests generating $1.3 million in revenue, a 2.3% increase year-over-year. In contrast, video gaming terminals (VGTs) saw a decrease, with April revenue at $3.4 million, down 3.6%.

Overall, Pennsylvania's gaming industry is steadily increasing its total revenue, bolstered by the strong growth of the iGaming sector. The entry into the multi-state agreement for the online poker market is particularly poised to be a significant turning point, potentially driving further growth in the future.