The American Gaming Association reports that total commercial gaming revenue and legal sports betting topped the $60 billion mark in 2022 — an all-time record for GGR that represents an impressive 13.9% year-over-year gain from the previous record total of $53 billion set in 2021.
Figures released on Wednesday as part of AGA's latest Commerical Gaming Revenue Tracker report also revealed that sports wagering was the main driver of overall gaming industry growth while online sports betting now accounts for 19.5% of total GGR.
In 2022, the relentless expansion of the U.S. sports betting market set a new record of $93.4 billion in handle. Correspondingly, sports betting revenue for 2022 grew exponentially to $7.5 billion — a spectacular 72.7% YoY jump over 2021.
These figures are all the more impressive given that Arizona has yet to report its latest quarterly results. Growth was primarily fueled by the launch of online sports betting in New York at the beginning of 2022, a year that also saw Arkansas, Louisiana, Kansas, and Maryland go live.
Overall, 2022 total gaming industry revenue of $60.42 billion was boosted by fourth quarter results that saw an all-time record high of $15.9 billion in quarterly GGR fueled by sports betting and online casino gaming.
Another outstanding result was posted by the iGaming sector which saw online casino revenue reach $5.0 billion in 2022, representing outstanding YoY growth of 35.2% despite the fact that iGaming is available in only six states — New Jersey, West Virginia, Michigan, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.
"The fundamentals of our industry are strong"
In his opening remarks at the Webinar that accompanied the release of the Tracker report, AGA President and CEO Bill Miller declared that "the fundamentals of our industry are strong" and that gaming growth in 2022 was the equivalent of "adding another Las Vegas."
Miller also said overall gaming industry revenue is expected to surpass the $100 billion mark for 2022 when accounting for tribal casino revenue is added to the total. Those figures will be released later this summer by the National Indian Gaming Association and are expected to exceed the FY 2021 GGR of $39 billion.
The AGA chief also cited figures that showed that half of all Americans can now bet on sports legally in 36 states and the District of Columbia, with three states set to introduce sports betting legislation in 2023.
"Our industry significantly outpaced expectations in 2022," said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller in a prepared statement that was part .
"Simply put, American adults are choosing casino gaming for entertainment in record numbers, benefitting communities, and taking market share from the predatory, illegal marketplace."
In remarks made during Wednesday's AGA Webinar, Miller said that he envisioned that by the end of 2023, there may be "as many as 40 legal sports betting markets" in the United States.
New York leads the U.S. in GGR
As expected, the state of New York generated the highest GGR in the U.S., accounting for $1.37 billion of the total sports betting pie and equivalent to a 13.7% share of the national market. Illinois came in second at $795 million (10.6%), followed by New Jersey in third place, ($763 million, 10.2%), Pennsylvania in fourth position ($597 million, 8.0%), and Virginia coming in at fifth ($481 million, 6.4%).
AGA is even more committed to cracking down on illegal and offshore gaming, as a major takeaway from Wednesday's AGA webinar was the organization's determination to convince state lawmakers to take increased measures to reduce the amount of illegal gaming.
Miller was vociferous in his remarks concerning the illegal sports betting market which he identified as "the single biggest threat that the (legal) industry faces."
He noted figures that estimate that Americans wagered over a half trillion dollars with "unregulated and offshore" betting sites that he said constituted a "significant threat" to AGA and overall sports industry efforts to create a safe betting market and ensure measures to curb problem gaming.
Miller also stated that "the AGA is chipping away at the (illegal industry's) market share by working with" the U.S. congress and explaining how these "bad actors" are violating the law and putting legal sportsbooks at a disadvantage.
