Pennsylvania reported an 11.6% year-on-year increase in gambling revenue during January, helped by double-digit growth across both the iGaming and sports betting markets.
Total gambling revenue in January hit $590.6 million, according to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. This surpassed the same month of the previous year but fell 4.2% short of December 2025.
As was the case in December, sports betting saw the highest percentage of growth during the opening month of 2026. The only areas of Pennsylvania’s commercial gaming industry not to see any growth in January were online poker and fantasy contests.
Sports betting revenue jumps 38.6% in Pennsylvania
Beginning with sports betting, revenue here increased 38.6% year-on-year to $71.4 million. However, this increase was not as high as the 287.8% spike reported in December, with the total also 15.8% down month-on-month.
Online sports betting revenue amounted to $67.6 million while retail wagering generated a total of $3.8 million. Handle-wise, players spent $782.4 million in January, down 10.4% year-on-year.
This resulted in a statewide hold of 9.13% among the sportsbooks.
As for individual operators, FanDuel and Valley Forge Casino Resort kept hold of top spot in the market. They posted $27.7 million off a $276.3 million handle for a 10.03% hold.
DraftKings and Hollywood Casino at the Meadows remained second with $22.7 million from $235.8 million, leaving a 9.63% hold. Hollywood Casino York and Fanatics Sportsbook again placed third with $5.6 million from $56.3 million for a hold of 9.95%.
iGaming fails to surpass record December
Turning to iGaming, revenue in this segment hit $249.3 million. While this comfortably beat January 2025 by 18.6%, it fell 4% short of December’s record $259.7 million haul.
Of the January total, $194.8 million came from online slots, a year-on-year rise of 22.8% and the highest single source of gambling revenue in Pennsylvania. Internet table games revenue also climbed 6.2% to $52 million but online poker revenue dipped 3.6% to $2.5 million.
Looking to operators, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course and its online gaming partners again led the way with $96.2 million in revenue. Valley Forge Casino Resort and partners were second with $67.2 million, ahead of Rivers Casino Philadelphia in third with $40.1 million.
Land-based casino revenue edges up
As for land-based casinos, revenue was higher across both slots and table games. Retail slots revenue was 0.7% higher from a year ago at $189.1 million, while physical table games revenue was 2.8% higher at $75.8 million.
Elsewhere, revenue from video gaming terminals at truck stops edged up 0.6% to $3.2 million, though fantasy contests revenue dropped 29.9% to $1.9 million.
Tax-wise, iGaming generated the most tax in January at $113.9 million. Sports betting tax hit $25.7 million, retail slots $95.6 million and physical table games $12.8 million.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/finance/double-digit-gambling-revenue-growth-pennsylvania-january/
