US sees highest-ever commercial gaming revenue at $13.89B

On the Las Vegas Strip, gaming revenue also hit an all-time high of $2.06 billion, partly driven by the steady return of tourism.

2021-11-10

United States

Reading time 2:12 min

This is the 2nd consecutive quarter of record performance. With $38.67B in revenue through the first 9 months of the year, the industry has already passed the numbers for the full year 2020, and is on pace to beat its annual record of $43.65B set in 2019. Traditional gaming continues to drive the upward trend, with combined slot and table games setting a new quarterly revenue record of $12.05B. iGaming also reported a record revenue of $938.6M.

American Gaming Association announced on Tuesday that nationwide commercial gaming revenue has reached a new quarterly record of $13.89 billion in Q3, 2021, according to AGA’s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker. The new high marks the second consecutive quarter of record U.S. commercial gaming performance.

With $38.67 billion in revenue through the first nine months of the year, the industry has already passed revenue generated for the full year 2020, and is on pace to beat its annual record of $43.65 billion set in 2019.

Traditional gaming continues to drive the industry's performance, with combined slot and table games setting a new quarterly revenue record of $12.05 billion. After lagging in previous quarters, table game revenue beat its quarterly revenue record by more than 10% in Q3 2021.

Ten out of 25 states with commercial casinos saw quarterly revenue records, including the four highest-grossing commercial gaming states in 2019: Nevada, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

On the Las Vegas Strip, gaming revenue also hit an all-time high of $2.06 billion. The record was driven, in part, by the steady return of tourism. 9.2 million people visited Las Vegas in Q3 2021, a nearly 10% increase over Q2 2021 and the highest quarterly visitation level since the outbreak of COVID-19.

Q3 2021 commercial gaming revenue was bolstered by record iGaming revenue of $938.6 million. Meanwhile, sports betting revenue saw a quarterly low for 2021 of $886.5 million due to a limited end-of-summer sports calendar. Combined sports betting and iGaming revenue through the first nine months of the year sits at $5.36 billion, up more than 200 percent year-over-year.

In an official press release, AGA President and CEO Bill Miller spoke about this past quarter’s results and said: "Two straight quarters of record gaming revenue is an incredible accomplishment in any context, let alone after the most challenging year in industry history. Our recovery is not a flash in the pan, but rather a sustained result of our leadership in responsible reopening, world-class entertainment offerings and widespread favorability.”

"With brick-and-mortar gaming setting records, the expansion into new verticals, and domestic and international tourism recovering, the industry is in a strong position for a full recovery," continued Miller. "I'm confident that the return of meetings, conventions and international travel will further accelerate gaming's recovery in 2022."

AGA's Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker provides state-by-state and cumulative insight into the U.S. commercial gaming industry's financial performance based on state revenue reports. This issue highlights third quarter results, covering July 1 through September 30, 2021 (Q3 2021).

32 states and the District of Columbia featured operational commercial gaming markets in Q3 2021, including casino gaming, sports betting and iGaming.