Casinos Raked In Record-Shattering $60 Billion In Revenue Last Year

Topline

Commercial gaming revenue in the U.S. topped $60 billion last year for the first time ever, according to a new report from the American Gaming Association, driven by a modest rise in slot and table gaming revenue along with an explosion in sports betting that topped 2021’s record of $53 billion.

The gambling industry earned more than $60 billion in 2022—setting a new record.

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Key Facts

Slot machines were far and away the biggest moneymaker, raking in over half of the total revenue—$34.2 billion, a 5.1% increase from 2021.

Table games came second with $10 billion in revenue—a 13.9% rise from 2021—but sports betting is closing in quickly on the traditional casino plays.

Sports betting generated $7.5 billion in revenue during 2022—a whopping 72.7% increase from a year earlier—after gamblers wagered a combined $93.2 billion on sporting events throughout the year.

The burgeoning iGaming industry, where gamblers play traditional casino games on their phones, brought in just over $5 billion in revenue—a 35.2% increase from a year earlier—despite only being legal in six states.

The American Gaming Association credited the revenue rise to Americans turning away from illegal gambling, even though it recently estimated Americans wager more than $500 billion a year through illegal gambling operations, resulting in $44 billion in lost revenue for casinos and $13.3 billion in tax losses for states.

Crucial Quote

“To carry our momentum into 2023, the AGA remains focused on combating the illegal market,” American Gaming Association president and CEO Bill Miller said in a statement.

Big Number

84 million. That’s how many Americans visited casinos in 2022, according to the report.

News Peg

The announcement came after an estimated $16 billion was bet on Super Bowl LVII—a sports betting record for a single event. Some 100 million sports betting transactions were made this weekend alone, according to a CNBC analysis.

Key Background

The U.S. has trended toward vastly expanding legal gambling options over the past several years, with many state political leaders arguing a gambling prohibition only served to funnel tax revenue into illegal operations. The most monumental change in recent years came in May 2018, when the Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision struck down a 1992 law that largely restricted sports betting to Las Vegas. The decision set off a wave of legalization efforts, allowing for legal sports betting in 33 states and the District of Columbia in time for Sunday’s Super Bowl.

Chief Critic

The moves have not come without serious detractors, though, who have raised concerns the rapid spread of legalized gambling could lead to addiction problems, especially among financially vulnerable people, while legalized sports betting increases the risk of match-fixing. “What millions now face are endless deceptive advertisements aired during the most-watched television broadcasts in America, inviting them to risk their money on platforms funded by venture capitalists rather than by organized crime,” Matthew Walther, editor of Catholic literary journal The Lamp, wrote in an Atlantic piece last year.