Rounding up some of the latest monthly state results in the US, iGB takes a closer look at how a drop in slots activity saw overall gambling revenue fall in Nevada in August, while Mississippi reported growth within its retail sports betting market.
Mobile sports betting in Nevada was up 13% on 2023 to $14.8m, data from the Nevada Gaming Control Board shows.
Baseball reaped the highest revenue of all sports during the month, making up $9.7m of the vertical’s revenue in August, while American football betting hit $8.7m. However, hockey and basketball betting activity both generated losses for operators.
Betting across other sports generated $7.6m in additional revenue, with the Control Board noting that $14.8m of all wagering revenue came from mobile.
Meanwhile revenue from sports betting pools, which is counted under table games, jumped 38.9% year-on-year to $25m in August.
The Control Board does not disclose handle details for sports betting.
Total gambling revenue in the state slipped 3.8% year-on-year to $1.16bn (£869.8m/€1.04bn). The August total is also 7.7% behind the total posted in July of this year.
The primary reason for this decline was a drop in in-person slots revenue. For August, overall slots revenue fell 3.8% to $798.3m.
Double-digit declines were seen across one-cent, five-cent, 25-cent, one-dollar and five-dollar slots. However, multi-denomination slots, the main source of gambling revenue in the whole state, saw revenue climb 15.7% to $555m.
Looking elsewhere in the market, revenue from table, counter and card games – including sports and racing pools – also dipped 3.8% to $365.5m.
Blackjack was again the main generator of revenue within this segment, collecting $105.9m for the month. This is 6.9% more than in August of last year.
Roulette revenue increased 22.9% to $49.0m, with growth also reported across three-card poker and Ultimate Texas Hold’em.
However, declines elsewhere hit the overall figures in Nevada. Baccarat revenue was down 34.3% to $76.3m, while craps revenue dipped 7.8% to $33.4m. Keno and Pai Gow revenue were also lower year-on-year.
Away from Nevada and into Mississippi, taxable sports betting revenue here amounted to $3.2m in August. This is 18.5% higher than last year and 68.4% ahead of July this year.
According to the Mississippi Gaming Commission, total spend on wagering during the month hit $22.6m, some 5.6% higher than 2023. This meant an overall hold of 14.1% for the state.
Coastal casinos again took the most sports betting revenue, with this amounting to $2.1m, up 31.3% year-on-year. Handle at these casinos topped $13.7m, meaning a 15.2% hold for August.
Central casinos generated $566,774 in revenue, down 22.4% from last year. However, players spent $5.3m betting on sports at these casinos, meaning a 10.7% hold.
Finally, revenue at northern casinos hit $530,735, up 42.8%. With handle at $3.6m, this left a 14.8% hold for the venues.
