Year of the American Commercial Casino Industry
Last year, 460 commercial casinos in the U.S. saw total gaming revenue increase 3.4% year-over-year to $40.28 billion, as 215 locations in Nevada once again took the lead with a total of $11.57 billion.
The figures come from an AGA survey (pdf) of the American commercial casino industry released yesterday by the American Gaming Association (AGA). The survey found Las Vegas Streep to be the most profitable gambling region in the U.S., with total gaming revenue up 1.3% year-over-year to $6.46 billion in 2017.
In addition, the study found that Atlantic City ranked second in the U.S. commercial casino category in 2017, with total gaming revenue for seven stadiums rising 2.2% year-on-year to $2.66 billion.
The area known as "Chicago Land," which covers all casinos in northern Indiana and Illinois, ranked third with $1.97 billion in total gaming revenue, while the area around Baltimore and Washington, DC, ranked fourth with $1.77 billion, beating New York City.
Total gaming revenue at the "Big Apple" venue reached $1.57 billion in 2017, with Detroit's three properties not far behind thanks to a total of $1.41 billion per year.
Casinos along Philadelphia and the Gulf Coast competed for seventh and eighth places last year, with $1.25 billion and $1.18 billion, respectively, followed by the St. Louis area with $1.03 billion and the Pocono Mountains with $995 million.
Perhaps most surprisingly, an AGA survey found that the total gaming revenue of commercial casinos in the United States last year was more than 22% higher than that of Macau. This marks the third year in a row that the Chinese city has failed to hold the top spot since it became the first country to dominate globally.
The U.S. reportedly collected 494 tribal gambling sites, which saw total gaming revenue increase 3.9% year-over-year to $32.4 billion, with the industry paying about $16 billion in taxes to federal, state and local authorities.