Online gambling explodes in Pa. as brick-and-mortar casino revenues tank due to pandemic

Casino revenues in Pennsylvania crashed in March as all gaming halls were shuttered for half the month due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board on Thursday released the predictably dismal data collected from the state’s 12 casinos and video gaming terminals and fantasy contests.

Revenues collapsed 51% last month to roughly $154 million from $316 million in the same period in 2019. The Gaming Control Board suspended gambling operations at all casinos after Gov. Tom Wolf ordered a state-wide shutdown on March 16 to in a bid to slow the spread of the virus.

Online wagering, however, provided one ray of revenue sunshine. Online operations weren’t subject to the shutdown. That sparked betting on internet casino games to soar 25 percent in March compared to the previous month.

“Pennsylvania is one of the few states that has an online gaming option,” said Doug Harbach, spokesman for the Gaming Control Board. “That has continued to keep tax revenue flowing.”

In the past three months, Pennsylvania collected more than $57 million in revenues from online casino wagering, versus $34 million in the last six months of last year. "So the first three months of this year has produced almost twice the revenues of the six months before it,” Harbach said.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board on Thursday released the predicaaby dismal data collected from the state’s 12 casinos and video gaming terminals and fantasy contests.ussia saw only moderate declines.

Mount Airy, the only Pennsylvania casino to feature internet poker, reaped nearly $6 million from internet games. With poker providing more than $3 million of that take, the Pocono casino’s total decline in revenues was limited to about 13%.

Valley Forge, with its partnership with vendor FanDuel, scored more than $54 million on sports wagering. Valley Forge’s total handle represented about half the money legally bet on sporting events in the entire state. It also generated nearly $5 million from its internet casino games, helping to limit its total revenue decline to about 11%

The biggest losers included Wind Creek Bethlehem, where revenues crashed to $15 million from the previous month’s $51 million for a 71% decline. Harrah’s Philadelphia in Chester saw its monthly revenue decline to almost $9 million compared to February’s $25 million for a 65% drop. Parx Casino in Bensalem took in $26 million in revenues in March compared with the previous month’s $58 million for a 55% decline.