Online Casinos Pools Record-Extending $153.7 Million Revenue in January

The monthly release of revenue figures for Michigan online casinos have never been short of surprises. But throughout the past four months, operators in the Wolverine state have had more positive outcomes to report than before. According to the Michigan Gaming Control Board, casinos in the state recorded a total revenue of $153.7 million.

Not only have general figures witnessed a steady rise, but individual casino operators have also recorded all-time highs. Which casinos have contributed most to the online casino revenue in the state? Should stakeholders expect a record extension in February. We provide all the details below.

The end of the festive season did not signal any negatives for casino operators in the state, despite many projections to that effect. Instead, Michigan online casinos went on to experience a growth of 0.6% in revenue between December 2022 and January 2023. This is the fourth straight month in which the industry will have a record figure as its monthly revenue.

Casinos in the Wolverine State moved from a total revenue of $152.8 million in December to $153.7 million in the outgone month. The January 2023 figures also show a whopping 26.8% increase in revenue from a year-over-year perspective, compared to January 2022 revenue of $121.2 million.

This sharp, steady growth can be said to be indicative of the industry’s general boom, player retention and viability of investments. As expected, casino taxes also jumped slightly, taking a cue from the revenue figures. In January 2023, the Michigan Gaming Control Board reported that online casinos paid $24.9 million worth of taxes to the state while another $9.7 million was paid to local authorities.

It’s not surprising that online casino operators also shattered many ceilings in the previous month. One record remained unchallenged, though, as BetMGM Michigan casino stole the show again as the highest grossing online casino operator by revenue. The brand had a big month, reporting revenue numbers of $52.8 million. This meant BetMGM contributed over 30% of the entire revenue of the state.

For broader context, BetMGM pooled just about $2 million shy of the total joint revenue of its closest competitors, FanDuel MI and DraftKings casino. However, it turns out DraftKings Michigan casino took positives out of January 2023, as MGCB figures reveal. The casino was one of four operators in the state that smashed their monthly revenue record in January. 
DraftKings made $26.24 million, a slight increase from December’s $26.15 million, its former record earnings. Golden Nugget, FireKeepers and Four Winds are the two other gambling brands that beat their previous best months in January 2023.

Although it doesn’t come as a surprise, it’s worth stating that PokerStars MI also saw a delightful boost to its January revenue statistics, thanks to its interstate poker developer. At the beginning of the year, PokerStars announced that it was introducing interstate poker to its players in Michigan and New Jersey. The result of this development is that the operator went on to record a 64.6% increase from December and its highest earnings since May 2021.

The question on most lips is whether this revenue record will find its way to affect February online casino figures positively. It may be a little too early to predict what the end of February will look like, but the chance of seeing a record-breaking month is quite low.

For one, February has only 28 days, three days short of the 31 available in January. Also, it appears more attention would have been shifted to Michigan sports betting with the Super Bowl taking centre stage as the major gambling event in the entire country.

However, there is strong evidence to warrant a bump in February. In 2022, Michigan online casino revenue jumped slightly from $122.2 million in January to $122.8 million in February. So, despite the three-day deficit, there is still precedent to favour a record-breaking February. Besides, the introduction of a long-awaited 15th gambling brand, SI Casino Michigan which started operations weeks ago, could bring some more revenue to the table.

Regardless of what happens in February, casino revenues usually take off later in the year. So, the four-month run may be an indicator to a bigger boom that we should expect later this year in the industry.