BY THE NUMBERS
STaRTinG STRonG
The latest data from the American Gaming Association ( AGA ) indicates the gaming industry ’ s strong start to 2023 is continuing . According to the AGA ’ s Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker , nationwide gaming industry win from traditional casino games , sports betting and iGaming reached $ 5.12 billion in February 2023 . This represents the highest February revenue number in history and a 14.5 percent year-over-year increase . It also marks 24 consecutive months of growth and the sixth month in a row with gaming revenue of more than $ 5 billion .
Gaming revenue grew year-over-year across all verticals in February , though at a slower pace than in January . Land-based casino revenue from slot machines and table games totaled $ 3.97 billion , sports betting produced $ 678.7 million , and iGaming produced monthly revenue of $ 465 million .
Driven largely by the seasonal decline in sports betting revenue , in-person gaming revenue made up a larger share of overall revenue in February ( 78.5 percent ) than it has since last August , prior to the start of football season .
At the state level , 29 of 33 commercial gaming jurisdictions that were operational one year ago and had reported at the time of writing posted year-over-year revenue growth in February . Several of the states that saw revenue declines in February were smaller , idiosyncratic sports betting markets , including Montana ( -20.6 percent ) and Delaware ( -1.7 percent ). However , South Dakota ( -3 percent ) and Louisiana ( -3.5 percent ) also saw year-over-year revenue fall from last year .
U . S . Monthly Commercial Gaming Revenue 2021-2023
February 2023 Commercial Gaming Revenue
United States : Monthly GGR by Vertical 2021-2023
Surging Esports
Casinos and sportsbooks looking at esports as a potential new revenue stream should look at recent data from SportsLens . com . According to the news site , global esports viewership is expected to reach 665 million by 2025 , with the entire market reaching an 8.5 user penetration rate .
According to a Statista survey , more than 210 million people worldwide started watching esports in the last five years , with the total number rising from 369 million in 2018 to over 580 million in 2023 . Statista expects the 2018 global esports viewership to jump by 369 million another 85 million by 2025 , with the total number of viewers reaching 664.5
2023
580 million million worldwide . Nearly one-third of global esports 2025
664 million predicted viewership comes from China . The country had more than 189 million esports fans in 2023 , expected to grow
Worldwide Esports Viewership
to 210 million in the next two years . According to Statista , the U . S . esports viewership will reach 36.2 million people in 2025 , up from 30.5 million this year . The U . K . market follows with a 16 percent viewership growth in two years and 15.5 million esports fans by 2025 .
6 Global Gaming Business JUNE 2023