Pennsylvania’s sportsbooks posted promising figures for June despite a shortage of major sporting events to bet on.
According to the latest report from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), bettors in the Keystone State wagered $89m on sporting events in June, representing a 14.8% month-on-month increase on the $77.5 wagered in May.
Sports betting revenue jumped to $8m in June, a significant increase on the $4.8m generated the month prior.
June marked one year since the first full month of online sports wagering in the state of Pennsylvania. According to the figures, mobile betting accounted for $46.3m (41.7%) of the state’s total betting handle for the month.
Breaking down the figures
Looking closer at the figures, Valley Forge Casino Resort, which is partnered with FanDuel for online sports betting, was the best-performing venue in the state after generating $2.8m from $32.9m in sports bets.
Meadow casino and its online partner DraftKings came in second place after bettors wagered $25m leaving the license holder with $1.3m in betting revenue.
Rivers Philadelphia came in third place after generating $528,072 from $8.5m in sports wagers. The Rivers venue in Pittsburgh followed close behind with $6.3m in sports wagers and $322,077 in sports betting revenue.
Pennsylvania vs New Jersey
The US sports betting industry has been hit incredibly hard by the coronavirus pandemic which resulted in the cancellation and postponement of nearly all major US sporting events and the temporary closure of land-based casinos.
However, some states are beginning to recover as bettors are finding new sporting events to wager on and states are allowing casinos to reopen.
Although Pennsylvania’s market is recovering, it is still lagging behind New Jersey’s sports betting market. Figures from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released earlier this month revealed that betting handle hit $165m in June, up 40% from May.
New Jersey’s fast recovery could be chalked up to the fact that it has a much longer established sports betting market and there is more choice for customers. At the same time, it is important to consider that residents from New York may be travelling across the border to place bets in New Jersey, providing a small boost to the state’s handle.
Igaming revenue drops in June
Igaming revenue amounted to just over $50m in June for the second consecutive month. However, this figure was down from the $55.8m generated in May.
Online slot games accounted $36.8m of the state’s total Igaming revenue, while table games generated $10m and online poker added $3.24m to the state’s total.
This can be attributed to the reopening of the state’s casinos and the resumption of other land-based gambling activities, as well as sports bettors moving away from online casino games and back to sports wagering.
