Strong First Month of Online Betting In Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania saw benefits from their first month with legalized online sports betting as the state generated an all-time high of $46.3 million of revenue for June.

These record numbers come in spite of there being just one online sportsbook offering sports betting in PA, the SugarHouse Casino.

The June revenue figures should increase in July as the state opened two new online sportsbooks on June 27th.

“The summer months are historically the slowest on the sports betting calendar, so a relatively strong showing is significant,” said Jessica Welman, sports betting analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com.

“The rollout has been slow and with considerable hurdles, most notably the exclusion of online sportsbooks from iOS. Still, there is no question that the launch of online sports betting is a shot of momentum for the industry.”

Source: playpennsylvania.com

How Did the Addition of Online Sports Betting Boost Overall Numbers?

From the month of May, June’s numbers were up almost $11 million with the addition of online betting.

The month did have the NBA playoffs, including the finals, to help assist the overall numbers but the ability to bet from mobile devices in the state certainly helped the industry’s bottom line.

Overall, $19.3 million of the bets in June were made online in Pennsylvania, roughly 42% of the complete take by casinos.

Although Pennsylvania’s percentage pales in comparison to New Jersey’s online numbers, the state should see a lift by the addition of the online sportsbooks offered by Rivers Casino and Parx Casino.

New Jersey’s online bets in June crossed the 83% threshold, a staggering mark that has many experts saying that the Garden State could eclipse Nevada as the gambling capital of America.

What’s the Future of Online Betting in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania is readying the launch of four more online sportsbooks by the end of the summer, bringing the total in the state to seven.

Another huge hurdle, a problem with Apple devices, such as iPhones and iPads, should soon be corrected offering up an even larger pool of bettors for the state’s sportsbooks.

“Hopefully by the beginning of football season, online sportsbooks will be a bit closer to maturity,” Welman said.

“Summer months being typically slow, it is a good time for the industry to work out the kinks and SugarHouse just launched an iOS workaround.”

“But sports betting revenue will be artificially depressed if the obstacles we’ve seen so far aren’t smoothed out by the end of summer,” Welman concluded.

Source: playpennsylvania.com

How Will Online Casino Games Help Pennsylvania Casinos Add Revenue?

Even with the help from online sports betting, the casinos in the state didn’t bring home tremendous revenue.

SugarHouse Casino, the lone online sportsbook for the majority of June, just made $1.8 million in profit over the month.

The weaker profit figures could get a significant enhancement by the arrival of online casino games to the state.

Parx Casino opened online casino games to customers this week and more should add the online offering in the coming weeks.

“Online casino games will be crucial for the health of Pennsylvania gaming industry,” said Dustin Gouker, lead analyst for PlayPennsylvania.com.

“We’ve seen in New Jersey that online casinos benefit not only online sports betting, but also brick-and-mortar casinos. Ultimately, online casinos should generate millions in tax revenue for Pennsylvania.”

Source: playpennsylvania.com