The American Gaming Association (AGA) released the July results of its revenue tracking tool, which provides information on the gaming industry’s financial performance for the month at both the state and national levels.
In July, the gaming industry extended its record streak as casino gaming, sports betting and electronic gaming revenue reached $4.83 billion. The number surpasses the previous record, verified in May, and makes July the month with the highest revenue in the history of the segment.
In the annual comparison, July revenues increased 29.6% compared to the same month in 2019, before the pandemic. The positive results of July were driven by the return of summer leisure travel and a favorable calendar, which included five weekends and the 4th of July holiday.
Physical gaming market is also up in the US
In addition, since the start of the pandemic, July was the first full month that casinos in the 25 states that allow gambling have been able to operate at full capacity. Another highlight is that it was the fifth consecutive month with double-digit growth in gaming revenue compared to 2019.
In the first seven months of 2021, industry revenue almost equaled the US$29.98 billion generated in the whole of last year, with US$29.60 billion. During July, the casino markets registered an increase in the number of visitors. Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana and Missouri reported the highest number of visitors since the pandemic began.
Tourists are also returning to Las Vegas, which had 3.3 million people in July, up 11.2% from June, and Atlantic City, which was up 13.3% from June. Although visitor numbers still do not match pre-pandemic levels, they show a positive trend.
Revenue figures show that physical gaming has had a historic peak in monthly revenue of $4.29 billion, representing the largest share of total gaming revenue in nearly a year. In addition, new monthly records were recorded in slots revenue ($3.02 billion) and table games ($933.6 million).
Most casinos have returned to the level before the COVID-19 threat: only the Michigan market experienced a small decline compared to 2019, of 2.8%.
Sports betting and eSports
The growing importance of the electronic games market, which is advancing in parallel with the recovery of the traditional industry. Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia and Michigan reached $305.8 million in July. Thus, video game revenues are only 1.8% below the monthly record set in March 2021.
The sports betting market did not improve like the others, as Americans bet US$ 2.42 billion, which represents a drop of 33.9% compared to June and a rise of 168.8% compared to July 2020.
However, it is important to note that July is a typically calm month due to the sports calendar. Still, the market registered the lowest monthly sportsbook activity mark this year.
Nevada Gaming Industry Record
July was also an exceptional month for the state of Nevada, where casino gross profit hit a record $1.36 billion, marking the fifth consecutive month to surpass $1 billion. The state reported nearly 80% revenue growth in July compared to July 2020.
