Casino City’s Friday Five: Revenue records edition
Both commercial gaming in the U.S. and iGaming in several states saw new highs posted recently. On top of that, we have a newly expanded poker room coming to a popular Las Vegas Strip casino, the World Series of Poker’s 2024 schedule has been released, and bad news for U.K. online operators with new minimum stake limit being announced today.
Let’s start this week with online slot news:
5. Stake limit coming for U.K. online slots
Currently, online gamblers in the U.K. do not have to worry about a government bet limit when it comes to playing slots. However, that is about to change.
Today, it was announced that for players aged 18-24, a £2 max bet for online slots will be instituted. For players over 25, there will be a £5 max bet. Some operators have already put in place a bet limit before this was even discussed. For example, Flutter already used a £10 stake limit for players.
Part of this decision is due to problem gambling as the most recent National Health Survey to chart problem gambling found that nearly 9% of online casino users were considered problem gamblers.
With the new stake limits in place, the U.K. government anticipates the industry will see a decrease of £170 million.
4. The Venetian expands and relocates poker room
The Venetian Las Vegas plans to unveil a brand-new poker room this summer. The iconic poker room will relocate from The Venetian casino floor to Level 2, Grand Canal Shoppes.
The new poker room will feature 50 tables spread across 14,000 square feet of space, making it the largest room on the Las Vegas Strip. The expansion allows for upgraded seating arrangements.
The room will also have kiosks for both the resort’s loyalty program, Venetian Rewards, and sports betting operated by William Hill.
The room will continue to spread cash games and the DeepStack poker tournament series. An added benefit of the venue is the launch of a dedicated streaming room, allowing players to coordinate a vlogging session and provides the ability to stream tournament final tables and cash games.
3. New Jersey breaks gambling revenue records
The nine brick and mortar casinos in the Garden State won $205 million in January 2024, a decrease of 3.1% when compared to $211.7 million reported in January 2023, according to the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.
But while land-based numbers in New Jersey declined, online gambling set a new all-time high. In January, internet gaming revenue reported by casinos and their partners was $183.3 million, a growth of 19.9% compared to January 2023, marking a new monthly record for New Jersey.
New Jersey's total #gaming revenue surged to kick off 2024, according to the January 2024 numbers by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement. Take a look at the results ?? https://t.co/WYZZ8bnkmi pic.twitter.com/nVfHZYtG9W
— NJBIZ (@NJBIZ) February 19, 2024
New Jersey wasn’t the only state to enjoy such results. January iGaming gross receipts in Michigan totaled $181.9 million, beating the previous high of $181.4 million that was recorded in December 2023.
This news comes right at the same time as Caesars Entertainment’s announcement that it acquired Michigan iGaming operations from Wynn Resorts. Caesars gains access to the Sault Tribe's iGaming skins, enabling it to operate additional digital brands in the state while existing WynnBET customers will be transitioned to Caesars' iGaming platform.
2. US commercial gaming revenue hits another record in 2023
U.S. commercial gaming revenue reached an annual record of $66.5 billion in 2023, according to the American Gaming Association’s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker. The total surpasses 2022’s previous high of $60.5 billion by 10%, marking the industry’s third-straight record revenue year.
The year was punctuated by all-time high quarterly revenue of $17.4 billion in Q4 2023, anchored by $6.2 billion in revenue in December, the highest grossing month in industry history.
In 2023, 12 of the top 20 commercial casino gaming markets reported revenue growth compared to the previous year, with the top market—the Las Vegas Strip—seeing the strongest year-over-year gains. New Jersey maintained its spot as the second-highest grossing market.
???? NEW: U.S. commercial gaming revenue reached an annual record of $66.5 billion in 2023. The total surpasses 2022’s previous high of $60.5 billion by 10%, marking the industry’s third-straight record revenue year.
— American Gaming Association (@AmericanGaming) February 20, 2024
Full release and AGA analysis ?? https://t.co/kRekQ2VYbP pic.twitter.com/OvPHNTCbdQ
1. WSOP releases 2024 daily event schedule
Following the success of the record-breaking tournament in 2023, the 55th edition of the World Series of Poker heads back to the Las Vegas Strip at Horseshoe Las Vegas and Paris Las Vegas.
The 2024 series will run from 28 May to 17 July 2024, offering nearly 700 tables, new events and the Main Event, which begins on 3 July.
The Main Event Final Table will occur 16-17 July at Horseshoe Las Vegas. Last year’s Main Event drew a record 10,043 entrants and crowned Daniel Weinman as its champion.
One of the new events taking place this year is the Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold'em. For the first time, players ages 50 and up can participate in an exclusive new high roller event. Featuring a $5,000 buy-in and 50,000 starting stack, the three-day event begins on Wednesday, 26 June.
WORLD SERIES OF POKER REVEALS FULL 2024 WSOP DAILY EVENT SCHEDULE??
— WSOP - World Series of Poker (@WSOP) February 16, 2024
The 55th Annual World Series of Poker will run from May 28 to July 17, offering nearly 700 tables, many new events, and the highly-coveted WSOP Main Event Bracelet.
Full PR: https://t.co/ia2RJQbXVo
Schedule:… pic.twitter.com/LRQGcD1Uhv