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Commercial gaming is in the middle of a record-breaking run across the country as New York weighs developers’ plans to build casinos downstate, including in the Big Apple.
Revenue from traditional casino games, sports betting and online gambling reached $6.21 billion in July, a 7.9 percent increase from the same period the previous year, according to the latest revenue data compiled by the industry group, the American Gaming Association.
That pushes year-to-date commercial gaming revenue to $44.7 billion so far in 2025, up 8.1 percent compared to the first seven months of 2024. The industry brought in $10.4 billion in state gaming taxes across the country over the same period.
Across the country, the growth was widespread. Revenue in 34 of the 38 existing gaming jurisdictions climbed annually. But the expansion of the market in a few states played an outsized role in driving growth, with gross gaming revenue climbing 134.5 percent in Nebraska, 43 percent in Virginia and 23 percent in Illinois compared to the same time last year.
New York’s four upstate land-based commercial casinos lie in the middle of the pack, bringing in $467 million in gross gaming revenue from January through August. That’s up 2.2 percent from $457 million during the same period last year, according to the New York State Gaming Commission’s latest report.
New York State is in the middle of deciding who to give licenses for three casinos downstate, including in New York City.
The final four prospects are in Yonkers, the Bronx and Queens. Developers were betting on a casino in Manhattan, but it wasn’t in the cards for the island — a letdown for the former contenders, including SL Green’s Marc Holliday.
Six years after the U.S Supreme Court overturned the federal ban on sports betting, the industry’s transformation has been profound. Thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia have since joined Nevada in opening jurisdictions to allow wagers on the results of individual games.
While traditional land-based casinos saw healthy annual growth of 4.7 percent to reach $4.4 billion in July, the smaller online sector is currently the true powerhouse. Revenue from online gaming — including internet sports betting and virtual casinos — grew 20.8 percent year-over-year, reaching $1.78 billion in July.
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