The revenue numbers of casinos in Illinois, including Chicago casinos, look a little like a beachside roller coaster – up and down.
The Illinois Gaming Board has released its most recent report, which provides details about the number of people visiting Prairie State casinos, the amount of money they spent, and other gambling-related information.
In the month of May, Illinois casinos made over $122 million in total adjusted gross receipts (AGR). This amount is 4.7% less than what they earned in April, which was more than $128 million. One factor for the decline may be attributed to the fact that May 2023 had just four full weekends compared to April 2023 which had five full weekends.
However, it is interesting to note that the revenue for May 2023 is up nearly 5% compared to May 2022, when the revenue was $116.57 million.
The solid revenue figures, which include both casino and Illinois sports betting, generated nearly $24 million in state taxes, while the local government received almost $7 million.
Rivers Casino Tops in Illinois in May
Out of the 13 casinos in Illinois, the Rivers Casino located in Des Plaines near Chicago was the top performer in terms of gaming revenue. It was also the only casino that collected more money than the previous month.
In May, Rivers Casino generated over $46.64 million in revenue, which is four times higher than the next most successful casino in Illinois, and a more than $45 million increase month over month.
Here is a summary of the May report from the Illinois Gaming Board, detailing the total adjusted gross receipts of Illinois casinos:
- Rivers Casino: $46.64 million
- Grand Victoria Casino: $12 million (a decrease of over $1.5 million when compared to April)
- Harrah’s Joliet Casino & Hotel: $10.36 million (a drop from the $12.25 million generated the previous month)
- Hollywood Casino Aurora: $7.83 million (down from the $9.10 million generated in April)
- Hollywood Casino Joliet: $7.31 million (a decrease from the $8.30 million generated in April)
- DraftKings at Casino Queen: $6.82 million (almost on par with the previous month)
- FHR-Illinois LLC: $6.39 million (a decrease from the $6.83 million generated in April)
- Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino: nearly $5.65 million (a decrease from the $5.55 million in April)
- Hard Rock Casino Rockford: almost $5.61 million (a decrease from the $6.25 million generated the previous month)
- Harrah’s Metropolis Casino: $5.61 million (a decrease from the $5.99 million generated in April)
- Bally’s Quad Cities Casino & Hotel: $4.74 million (a decrease from the $5.25 million generated in April)
- Argosy Casino Alton: nearly $2.71 million (a decrease from the $2.75 million in April)
- Danville Development: $365,864.
It’s important to note that the Danville Development casino operated for only six days in May.
Decline Comes on Heels of Online Gambling Bill Dying
The overall decline in May came in a month when hopes for online gambling in Illinois officially ended for 2023. A pair of bills were introduced in the General Assembly early this year but gained no traction before the session ended on May 19.
Although bills to legalize Illinois online casinos failed, lawmakers may still want to give it another try in 2024. PlayIllinois’ calculation indicates that the state’s failure to legalize online casinos could result in an annual tax revenue loss of nearly $105 million.
Calculators
