Indiana casinos experience eighth consecutive month of Y-o-Y revenue decline in October

Indiana’s gambling industry continues to witness a persistent downward trend in revenue, with October marking the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year drops for the state's 12 casinos. While the overall financial outlook remains subdued, a contrasting surge in sports betting activity was observed last month, with handle increasing by 6.3% from September 2023 to nearly $430 million.

Figures released by the Indiana Gaming Commission underscore a decline in adjusted gross revenue from Indiana casinos, amounting to $169.5 million last month. This represents a 10.3% downturn from October 2022 and a $7.3 million decrease compared to September.

A significant portion of this downturn is attributed to a 5.4% month-over-month decrease in slot machine winnings, which contributed $153.3 million to the total revenue in October. The overall revenue slump affected all 12 casinos across the state, each experiencing year-over-year declines in their financial performance. 

Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana in Gary retained its status as the highest-earning casino, amassing $31.3 million in revenue. Meanwhile, Horseshoe Hammond witnessed the most significant revenue drop, plunging by 21.3% compared to October 2022.

Only two properties saw increases in revenue when compared to September of this year. Caesars Southern Indiana marked a 6.8% increase, while Ameristar Casino in East Chicago saw an uptick of 6.3% over the previous month. 

Despite these pockets of improvement, PlayIndiana projects that Indiana’s casinos are on track to round off the year with a total revenue of $2.25 billion. The figure would be down slightly from the $2.39 billion posted last year.