Ohio Casino Revenues Fall to $81.6 Million in June

Ohio’s four full casinos brought in just under $81.6 million in total revenue for June 2024, their lowest total take since the $75.2 million the facilities brought in during January of this year.

That number was also down 1.5 percent year-over-year from the $82.8 million the four casinos earned in June 2023, according to data from the Ohio Casino Control Commission.

JACK Cleveland Drags Down Overall Casino Numbers

Despite the overall drop in revenue, three of the four Ohio casinos were at least able to hold their ground in June. Hollywood Columbus and Hard Rock Cincinnati both saw minimal gains, while Hollywood Toledo was up 2.9 percent to $18.2 million on the month.

The losses came exclusively from the JACK Cleveland Casino. After bringing in $21.7 million in June 2023, the casino saw just $19.7 million in revenue in June 2024, down 9.1% year-over-year. The big drop came from slot revenues, which were down to $12 million from $13.2 million last year, with customers wagering about $3.4 million less on the machines year-over-year.

It's not clear if this number dropped because they had to pay out significant jackpots or experienced a decline in casino visitation and spend. 

Sports Betting, Racinos Do Well in June

While JACK Cleveland may have dragged down the casino numbers, the rest of Ohio’s gaming industry appeared to have a strong month. 

Sports betting revenue was up significantly in June, with the state bringing in a total of $51.2 million for the month. That was up 56.9 percent year-over-year from the $32.6 million in sports betting revenue from June 2023. Almost all of that growth came from online play, which rose from $32.1 million in 2023 to $50.5 million this June, though that was the lowest total so far in 2024. 

The state’s racinos, all of which offer video lottery terminals (VLTs), also enjoyed a solid month. The seven facilities combined to bring in $114.3 million in June, up from the $110.7 million they collected a year prior, according to the Ohio Lottery.

Revenues in all three categories were down month-over-month compared to May. However, that was an expected outcome as the industry moves into the generally slower summer season.

Overall, the casinos and racinos have combined to bring in $1.197 billion in total revenue for the first six months of 2024. That’s down less than one percent from the $1.207 billion that the facilities had earned in the first half of 2023, while sports betting revenue is down 18.8 percent to $428.5 million for the year. 

The Ohio Casino Control Commission has been trying to improve these numbers by cracking down on illegal operators in the state. In April, the commission busted three facilities that were operating in St. Marys and Wapakoneta, saying that the illegal facilities attracted additional time in and around the operations. 

(Image: Alexander Farmer / Alamy)