Ohio's casinos, racinos witness dip in gambling revenue to $204 million in April

The Ohio Casino Control Commission has released its latest monthly revenue report, covering the month of April. The state, which has a total of 11 casinos and racinos combined, generated $204.6 million in gambling revenue in the fourth month of the year, down from April 2021 and 2022, when the monthly revenue was $217.1 million and $215.6 respectively. 

However, while down from the record performances in 2022 and 2021, the monthly revenue of April 2023 outperformed all other Aprils since casino gaming began in Ohio in 2012. 

In April, Ohio’s casinos generated a gambling revenue of $86.5 million, down from $92.8 million in April 2022. Meanwhile, the racinos raked in $118.1 million, which was a decline compared to the $122.7 million brought in the same month last year.

JACK Cleveland Casino placed first among all casinos at $86.5 million in revenue, followed by Hard Rock Casino Cincinnati at $22.5 million. Meanwhile, JACK Thistledown Racino dominated the racino segment at $118 million, followed by Hollywood Mahoning Valley's $26.5 million.

When compared to March 2023, April’s casino revenue of $86.5 million saw a decline of 7.5%. However, the first three months of 2023 reported healthy numbers in terms of overall revenue, which means that this year’s gambling total is still ahead of the same period in 2022 year-over-year. 

Collectively, for the first four months of 2023, the state's 11 gambling establishments have generated $816.2 million in revenue. In comparison, by this time in 2022, the casinos and racinos had brought in $782 million and went on to break a record that year, meaning the state is yet again on pace to reach a new all-time high.

The state’s total gambling revenue has seen an increase each year since 2012, except for 2020, owing to the pandemic shutdowns. 

Ohio regulators also provided revenue updates from sports betting, which was legalized only this year. This revenue is counted separately from casino and racino revenue. Each casino and racino also features a physical sportsbook. 

In April 2023, Ohio’s licensed sportsbooks generated $68.7 million, down from $99.1 million in March 2023. The percentage of dollars in the winnings by these sportsbooks, however, remained nearly consistent, at 13.1% in March and 13.4% in April.