Maryland Casino Revenue Up in February as Sports Betting is Still Pending

In February, the six land-based casinos in Maryland combined to generate $162,965,304 in total gaming revenue.

This figure represents an increase of $36,757,280 (or 29.1%) compared to February 2021. Of course, however, this figure does represent a time in which the casinos were operating under restrictions related to COVID-19.

It was a 6% increase from the $153.75 million in January.

How Maryland Uses Funds

In Maryland, portions of the casino proceeds go toward programs such as the Education Trust Fund, but also support “communities and jurisdictions where the casinos are located, Maryland’s horse racing industry, and small, minority- and women-owned businesses.”

In total, the casino gaming contributions hit $68,237,059, which was an increase of more than $15 million compared to the same time last year. Of the contributions, the Education Trust Fund led the way, receiving nearly $50 million, which is also a near $11 million increase.

These are the current casinos in the state, and they all offer slots and table games:

• MGM National Harbor in Prince George’s County
• Live! Casino & Hotel in Anne Arundel County
• Horseshoe Casino Baltimore in Baltimore City
• Ocean Downs Casino in Worcester County
• Hollywood Casino Perryville in Cecil County
• Rocky Gap Casino Resort in Allegany County

According to Maryland Lottery and Gaming, these are how all six stack up in terms of revenue and the number of slots and tables offered:

MGM National Harbor (2,126 slot machines, 204 table games)

$65,837,104 in February 2022, an increase of $15,003,861 (29.5%) from February 2021

Live! Casino & Hotel (3,717 slot machines, 187 table games)

$59,438,059 in February 2022, an increase of $14,468,374 (32.2%) from February 2021

Horseshoe Casino (1,451 slot machines, 145 table games)

$17,718,142 in February 2022, an increase of $3,403,987 (23.8%) from February 2021

Hollywood Casino (714 slot machines, 18 table games)

$7,866,631 in February 2022, an increase of $1,570,311 (24.9%) from February 2021

Ocean Downs Casino (823 slot machines, 18 table games)

$6,592,413 in February 2022, an increase of $787,043 (13.6%) from February 2021

Rocky Gap Casino (625 slot machines, 16 table games)

$5,512,955 in February 2022, an increase of $1,523,704 (38.2%) from February 2021

More on Maryland Lottery and Gaming

Maryland Lottery and Gaming is responsible for overseeing operations of the state’s casino and provides “direction and guidance to its casino partners on financial, security, regulatory and licensing procedures for the facilities.”

For transparency, Maryland Lottery and Gaming offers public access to fiscal and calendar year-to-date totals as well as monthly financial reports.

Lastly, Maryland Lottery and Gaming “reminds players to play responsibly and within their budget; resources are available at mdgamblinghelp.org or by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.”

Maryland Sports Betting Update

Five of the casinos offer retail sports betting of the eight approved in the state.

Those five books brought in $32.5 million in betting handle in February.

Retail sports betting launched on Dec. 9 and online sports betting sites are still in the works, with a possible launch in the fall. The important part is that MD residents will get to see Maryland sportsbooks at some point this year.

With that in mind, bettors will soon be able to avail of sports betting promotions online with FanDuel Maryland and BetRivers Maryland.